Fallen Angels
by Catie Kerwood
Summary: [Criss Angel:Mindfreak] Criss is witness to an accident that should be impossible for anyone to survive. But someone does, and what she is will shake his beliefs in everything and turn what he thinks he knows about the world upside down.
1. Chapter 1

Fallen Angels: Ch. 1

Criss ran through the desert, the harsh Nevada sun beating down on his naked shoulders. His scalp itched where sweat had gathered under his hat and his back tickled as a bead of moisture rolled down the spinal crevice. Thunder rolled over the desert, drowning out the sound of his music coming out of his headphones and he stopped, watching as it roiled over the barren land. Rain was rare in Nevada, the storms staying in the mountains. A noise similar to an explosion echoed across the land and made his ears ring. He cleared his ears as pressure built and that's when he saw the bright shape moving through the dark clouds. It didn't look like lightening though; it was almost spherical in shape. It left the clouds and the ground shook, as it impacted not far from him. The sound of it landing shook him to the core and fear and dread filled him. He broke into a run towards it, hearing the truck for A&E roar across the terrain for him.

When he reached it, he reeled away in horror. The deep skid was almost a mile long and sticking out from under the dirt and stone he could see a pale, delicate human hand. He inched closer and the smell of sulfur filled his nose, making him gag. The hand twitched and he jumped back, freezing, not believing that anyone or anything could have survived. The van stopped and he heard the doors slide open. The hand twitched again, the rubble shifting and he exploded into action, running over and starting to fling away rocks and dig through dirt. He uncovered a wealth of dirty black hair and he moved faster, uncovering a young woman and pulling her out gently. He cradled her in his arms and her eyes snapped open. Pain and shock filled black eyes fixed on him and she started to cry. Criss sat down on the ground and held her in his lap, holding her head to his chest and stroking her hair. He looked up and at the camera guys, their gear trained on him.

"Call 911." He said.

-------------------------

Criss, Costa, and JD were sitting in the hospital waiting room, waiting to hear from a doctor. Criss had pulled on a shirt and had called his brothers while he was en route to the hospital behind the ambulance. He had told them what had happened and they arrived at the hospital shortly after he did. He got the evidence of his digging (scrapes on his fingers and hands) taken care of and sat with his brothers in the waiting room. He wasn't able to fill out forms for the woman because he didn't know who she was and the paramedics that had first arrived at the scene had found no ID on her. The image of her eyes flashed before his and he put his head in his hands. Costa tapped his shoulder and he looked up as a doctor approached them. They stood and the man stopped in from of them.

"Mr. Angel?" the doctor asked.

"That's me." Criss said, stepping forward. "How is she?"

"Perfectly fine with the exception of minor cuts and scrapes. I saw the tapes of the incident, footage taken by your camera crew. I saw the state she was found in and the skid and was astonished that she's even alive. People who fall out of airplanes, or have faulty parachutes usually die on impact but she doesn't even have a broken bone. Its simply amazing." He said, his eyes dancing with excitement.

"Is she awake?" Criss asked but the doctor shook his head.

"She lost consciousness en route." He said and a shrill scream rent the air. "That's coming from her room!" he turned and ran, Criss, Costa and JD following.

Elidra (Elle-ee-druh) woke as the doctor was leaving and sat up, her eyes scanning the machines. The inside of her elbow itched and she looked down seeing the IV. A wave of heat washed over her and she looked over, her eyes going wide as she saw the impeccably dressed man with long blonde hair standing next to the bed, his clear blue eyes sparkling at her dangerously.

"Get thee behind me Satan." She said and he snorted rudely.

"Please Elidra," he said in a bored tone. "Must you use that demeaning name?"

"What do you want Lucifer?" she asked.

"That's better. How's dad?"

"Same as always, loving, forgiving, caring." She said and he snorted again.

"I always like Him better when He smote people. And anyways, He's not so forgiving if you're here on the mortal plane."

"I screwed up and got punished."

"Just like me." He said but she shook her head.

"No. No one dares make _that_ mistake again." She said and he gave out a short laugh.

"Good. I set an example then. How's Michael?"

"Fine, still angry with you."

"You'd think after 5000 years he might cool down a little. I forgave him for not backing me; he should do the same and forgive me. What about Gabriel?"

"He's fine, forgave you a long time ago."

"Azrael?"

"Indifferent, as always." Elidra said and he snorted softly, a small smile coming to his lush lips, he was always the most beautiful of all the angels.

"Nothing could phase him. I always like that about him."

"Come back Lucifer. We all miss you. Even Him, He won't admit it, but He does. You were always his favorite."

"Not until He apologizes, and you and I both know _that's_ never going to happen. The whole 'God is infallible' and all that." He said and sighed. "I'm not here to catch up."

"Didn't think you were."

"You know the deal Elly. Every Fallen goes to me."

"Yes, but they have to go willingly."

"Very true. So come with me Elly, it's not as bad as people make it out to be. No eternal torment, pools of lava and the screams of millions of condemned souls. There aren't 10 levels, just one and its kind of boring. There's no greater Hell than being bored out of your mind for all of eternity, trust me, I know." Lucifer said, smiling and winking at her and she gave out a soft laugh.

"I can't Lucifer. I know about the one year clause."

"Hmm, He's usually not that forthcoming with the loopholes."

"Michael told me as I was on my out."

"Good old reliable Michael. I could take you by force you know."

"I know. But then I'd be half in half out."

"Half is better than nothing." He said and reached for her.

"Don't do it Lucifer."

"You can't stop me, He took away all your weapons." He said.

"True, but I do have something left." She said and he stopped.

"What?" he asked and she opened her mouth, giving out a loud scream. "Touché." He said approvingly and vanished in a flash of fire. A doctor followed by a man she recognized, two she didn't, and security guards. She stopped screaming and gave them a look of fear. "When I woke up there was a man standing over me. He didn't look like a hospital employee so I screamed."

"Where did he go?" a security guard asked and the doctor went over to her and started taking her vitals. "He ran when I screamed, I don't know where."

"What did he look like?"

"Tall, dark hair, green eyes, that's all I saw." She said and he removed the comm from his belt, holding it to his mouth and sending the vague description to the other security guards around the building.

"Miss," the doctor said and she looked at him. "What do you remember of the accident?"

"I remember falling and then I remember seeing him." she said, looking at the man she recognized.

"Nothing else?" the doctor asked and she looked back at him, shaking her head.

"No, nothing."

"Do you remember your name?"

"Elidra." She said.

"Last name?"

"Nope, sorry."

"It's alright, its just shock, it'll start coming back to you. Do you remember any family?"

"No."

"Anyone we can contact?" he asked

"No, as far as I know I don't have anyone."

"What about a birthday?" he asked but she shook her head. "Hometown?" another shake. "Maybe a school that you went to?" she shook her head. "What can you remember?"

"Someone angry, he was yelling and I was pleading with him, at least, I think it was a man. Then I was falling. Then nothing."

"Nothing before that?"

"Nothing."

"What was he yelling about?"

"I can't remember." She said and looked down at her lap, looking at the red scrapes along her arms that seemed to glow an angry bright red against her milk-white skin. "I'm sorry."

"Its okay sweetheart." He said. She looked up and at the man she recognized.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Criss." He said and she smiled a radiant smile. Soothing warmth spread from his core and throughout his body.

"Thank you for helping me Criss." She said and he nodded, slightly confused at what he was feeling. "I wonder where I'm going to go." She said, mainly to herself.

"You can come with us." Criss said impulsively and they all looked at him in surprise.

"Criss, can we talk to you for a moment outside?" Costa asked.

"Now." JD added and they went outside the hospital room. "Where did that come from?"

"I don't know." Criss said truthfully. "I just…I just feel protective of her I guess. I found her, I held her, I feel like I should take care of her."

"She's very attractive." Costa said with narrowed eyes and Criss glared at him, perking an eyebrow.

"I honestly didn't notice. And besides, even if I did, it wouldn't be about that."'

"Then why take her in?"

"She's got no one guys, she's got nothing, she's vulnerable. God knows what she could become if she was left on her own." Criss said and JD sighed.

"Joanne isn't going to like it. She's not going to like it at all." he said and Criss was the one who sighed this time.

"I know, Dear Lord do I know." He said.

"It's settled then." Costa said. "She comes with us."

"Lets get back in there." he said and they went back in the room. "You're going to come with us." He said to her and she smiled again, producing the same warmth inside of him. A sideways look at his brothers told him that they felt it too based on their expressions. "Do you have any talents that you know of?"

"I think so." She said, her brow furrowed.

"Well, what?" he asked.

"Do any of you have a small object?" she asked and JD produced a small stress ball from his pocket.

"Is this good?" he asked and she nodded.

"Perfect. Can I see it please?" she asked, holding out her hand and he placed it in her palm. The doctor stepped back to stand with them and they watched as she held the ball in her palm in front of her face, her eyes fixed on the sphere. It started to shake and they watched as it raised off her palm to hover in the air in front of her. A furrow developed between her brows again and deepened the longer the ball hovered. She pressed her hand to her head and ball dropped onto the bed as her concentration broke.

"Well," Criss said, more than a little bit shocked. "Welcome to the team."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

She was up and dressed when Criss went alone to visit her the next day. Someone from A&E must have stopped by because she was wearing a tank top with his logo splashed across it along with a pair of black jeans. She was pacing back and forth behind her bed as if waiting. She stopped when he came in and gave him a smile.

"I was wondering when you'd show up, I have something to show you." She said.

"What?" Criss asked.

"Well I thought about it some more and realized that I can do more than just float a ball, even though I got a headache when I did."

"Yeah it looked like it hurt you to do that."

"Like spikes on the inside of my temples. Well anyway, watch this." She said and stood in the middle of the room. Her eyes fluttered closed and she started to breathe deeply. The air around her rippled as if waves of heat were emanating from her body. He jumped back in shock when she suddenly burst into flames as her eyes snapped open. He was about to call for help but he noticed that the flames gave off no heat. He reached out his hand and passed it through one of the orange tongues licking along her body. It wasn't hot; it was actually quite pleasant feeling, like velvet or silk along his bare skin. The flames slowly died out, and he had been so preoccupied with the strange flames that he hadn't noticed that her normally black eyes had gone ice blue. They slowly darkened, turning back to black, and it was a beautiful sight to behold. There was a peaceful feeling inside of him, calming warmth that made his lips pull into a lazy smile.

"That was incredible." He said, his voice low and languid. Reality rushed back to him in a great wave and his knees buckled. His hand gripped the side rail of the bed to keep from falling and she supported him with her hands around his ribs.

"You okay?" she asked and he looked at her with half-lidded eyes.

"What are you?" he asked and her eyes shimmered with unshed tears.

"I don't know."

Against the doctors' wishes, she was released later that day into Criss' care. They were on the bus on the way back to the Aladdin, Criss talking to his team about the next demonstration. Elidra was twisted around in her seat so she could look out the window, her head resting on her arm as she watched things go past outside. The flame trick she did left her tired, so she dozed lightly, the sun warm on her face. The motions of the bus and the hum of its engine lulled her to sleep. Sleep was unfamiliar to her but she had to now that she was human.

She was falling, wind whipping at her clothes and hair. The rushing air made tears stream from her eyes. Crushing cold penetrated her body down to her bones. Her shoulders burned, the large ragged wounds on her back healing over. The ground was rushing up to meet her, and with it, the pain of becoming human, becoming mortal. Thick black clouds formed, contrasting with her bright aura of white light that was quickly fading. Lightening forked around her, thunder rocking through her. She left the dense clouds and the ground met her.

Elidra opened her eyes with a gasp, but the memory still had its hands around her minds' eye.

"Elidra?" Criss asked but she didn't hear him, jumping out of her seat as the images continued.

Rocks flayed the skin from her arms and tore at her clothes. She seemed to slide forever, steadily getting deeper underground. Her thought was that she was going to be buried here, die here buried alive under so much earth as she slowed to a halt.

"Elidra!"

She could hear something coming, rhythmic pounds on the ground making it shake. The vibrations stopped and it was blissfully silent. The rocks shifted and she felt something touch her hair. She was about to be eaten by a wild animal. Dirt was pushed away from her in great heaps and she was picked up. She opened her eyes and looked up at a handsome human male. Shock and concern made his eyes glitter. He brushed the hair from her forehead with a gentle hand and warm tears coursed down her face. He looked like an angel with his perfectly formed body and the sun behind him giving him a halo of light. He came closer and sat down on the ground, cradling her in his lap like a baby, her cheek pressed against his hard chest and her hand trapped against his hard stomach. His gentle hand stroked her hair and she continued to cry against him.

When the images faded, she found herself sitting on the floor, her knees pressed to her chest. Criss was crouched in front of her, holding her arms tightly. The concern that was heavy in his eyes made tears form and she was suddenly in his arms, his hand stoking her back. Elidra put her arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder.

"She okay?" she recognized the voice as Costa's, Criss' older brother.

"I think she will be." Criss said and kept stroking her back, making 'shushing' sounds and murmuring words of comfort into her ear. She pulled her head out of her shoulder enough so she could look past his hair. Camera's from A&E were trained on them and she shrank back. Criss felt the change and looked over his shoulder, seeing them. "Turn those cameras off, don't film this." He said and the camera guys turned off their equipment, muttering apologies. "What was it Elidra? What did you dream?" he asked, resting his chin on her bunched shoulder

"I remembered falling." She said and his arms tightened around her. "I remembered the fear and the pain, and I remembered you finding me. Thank you Criss, thank you for finding me, for taking care of me." His hand stilled on her lower back and she put her face into his neck.

"I did what I could." He said and she smiled.

"You did more that most, and now you're taking me in not knowing anything about me."

"_You_ don't know anything about you."

"Very true." She said with a chuckle. They parted and Criss cupped her cheek in his palm.

"You okay now?"

"Yes." she said nodding. He got up off the floor of the bus and pulled her up with him. They were both aware of everyone looking at them and Elidra turned to them. "As I remember things, I'm probably going to have more and more episodes of what just happened now. If you guys don't want to deal with that, then fine, send me on my way. I just want to warn you."

"Elidra, we're not gonna kick you out just because you might freak out every once in a while." Costa said.

"Yeah, if we gave people the boot just because they wigged out, JD would be long gone." Criss said, a smile on his face.

"Shut up." JD said and they laughed.

"We're here for you Elidra, we'll help you through it." Dexter said and she looked down.

"You guys are gonna make me cry again." She said and they laughed again and she joined them.

"Elidra? Do you have a nickname that you can remember?" Johnny (Thompson) asked and she looked at him, her brow furrowed as she thought about it.

"I think I remember someone calling me 'Elly', but I'm not sure." She said and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Elly?" Criss asked and she nodded.

"Yup, 'Elly'."

"That's pretty." Criss said with a smile and she gave him a small smile back. The RV hit a bump and they swayed on their feet, suddenly remembering that they were in a moving vehicle. They sat down in seats and Criss put his arm across the back of the seats behind her shoulders. She folded her hands neatly in her lap and he put his hand very lightly on her shoulder, continuing to talk about the upcoming demonstration in the desert. The RV pulled up to the Aladdin and they all got up, leaving the bus.

"I already called ahead," Michael Blum said, "I got a room booked for Elly, wasn't easy, but I got it."

"Thanks." Criss said and Elly just touched Michael's arm briefly in thanks. "Where is it in relation to the suite?" he asked in reference to his suite that the hotel/casino gave him for meetings and debriefings.

"Right next to it, there's a door that connects the two rooms, we usually kept it locked for your privacy." He said and Criss nodded and they stepped into the cool of the hotel.

"What kind of media will I be looking at it?" he asked.

"Well you did save Elly, so there's gonna be reporters and stories flying around."

"Such as?" Elly asked.

"Well, some people are probably going to say that it was all orchestrated, a publicity stunt by Criss to gain more media coverage. Dime store tabloids mostly, some might even make up some story about finding out who you are."

"I'm sorry, tabloids?"

"Scandal Magazines." Criss said. "Magazines that take the truth and stretch it to make it sensational to sell more copies. It's all garbage anyway. Some of these tabloid vultures might even approach and try to force you to "confess" on the "scam" or the "deal" that we have."

"I don't think I can…I mean I can't…" Elly started, what little color she had draining from her face and her obsidian eyes going wide. Seeing her reaction, Criss reached over and took her hand in his own.

"It's okay. They're not gonna get anywhere near you. You've been through enough already, you don't need any more harassment." She squeezed his hand in thanks and he squeezed back, giving her a small smile. Their hands slid from each other's and back to their sides as they all got into elevators.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Elidra woke from her dream with a start and stared up at the ceiling for a while before getting up and padding naked to the bathroom. She looked into the mirror above the sink, eyeing her disheveled hair and the gauntness of her face. Dark circles were heavy under her eyes, making her eyes seem shrunken. Its been three weeks since she Fell and she hasn't been getting much sleep, reoccurring nightmares keeping her awake.

Criss and the others had expressed their concern over her condition and took her back to the hospital. The doctor then prescribed sleeping pills, but she hasn't been taking them, she didn't know if they would work on something such as she. Criss wanted her to talk about the dreams with him, maybe to work things out, but she always just brushed him off with "I don't remember them". How could she forget though? Scenes of battle and blood, carnage and gore. Hearing angels on both sides cry out in pain as they died. Blood on her hands, thick and hot, scalding her skin and searing her immortal soul.

Elidra picked up the pill bottle from the sink and looked at the label. Take one nightly with water. What the hell, she'll give them a shot. Twisting off the cap, she shook one out onto her palm and filled the glass on the sink with water, downing the pill and water in one swallow. She set the glass back down and looked into the mirror again, her black eyes unfazed as she eyed the blonde man standing behind her.

Green eyes looked at her reflection in concern, a look of sadness on his handsome face. His long hair was bound tightly to the back of his head, making his hair look short. The white T-shirt he was wearing stretched over his muscled chest and shoulders, forming like a second skin around his biceps. His blue jeans fit him snugly, accentuating his tapered waist and muscled thighs. What really stood out though was the huge pair of glittering wings sprouting from his back from two long-joints in his back and shoulders.

"Hello, Michael." Elidra said.

"Oh baby-sister, you look terrible." He said and she slid past him and out the bathroom door, grabbing the bathrobe on the way out and putting it on. Nudity was not uncommon up there, so they were used to seeing each other naked, but she was getting cold and wanted to cover up with something. He followed her out of the bathroom and put his hands on her shoulders. Warmth spread from his hands and through her body, calming her and setting her mind at ease.

"Thank you." she said and felt him press against her, his arms wrapping around her waist.

"No problem at all, Elly." He suddenly had his elbow behind her knees and he lifted her up into his arms, walking the short distance to her bed and laying her down, settling down next to her and pulling the blanket over them that had been kicked to the foot of the bed. The air shimmered and his wings fluttered as they retreated into his back leaving nothing but the smooth expanse of unbroken cotton. He brushed her hair away from her cheek and tucked the lock behind her ear.

"Don't you have to leave?" Elly asked and Michael gave her a gentle smile.

"I'll leave when you go to sleep, not a moment before." Leaning in, he pressed his lips into her forehead, leaving her skin tingling.

"The medicine should kick in soon." She said and already she was starting to feel drowsy. "You're helping it along, aren't you?"

"Yes. Get some rest, Elly. I worry about you."

"You worry too much." Elidra said and Michael gave her another warmth producing smile.

"About you? I can never worry too much about you." He said and she smiled drowsily, her eyes fluttering closed.

"And this is the Arch Angel that is feared by all the demons and devils in Hell." she said.

"They don't fear me, Elly. They never feared me." He said as she drifted off. He lowered his voice and leaned in close. "They fear you. They always have." he vanished from the bed and left her to sleep the dream-less sleep of drug induced slumber.

Elidra woke to someone shaking her shoulder and calling her name. She opened her eyes blearily and looked up at Criss' concerned face. He sighed in relief as he saw her eyes open and it seemed all the worry drained out of him.

"I've been trying to wake you up for almost an hour." He said.

"I took one of the pills the doctor gave me. What time is it?"

"Its after 3. We figured you needed the sleep so we left you alone, but I got worried." He said and she reached up, touching his cheek gently before letting her hand fall back onto the mattress. He gave her a soft smile and turned to leave. "I'll leave so you can shower and get dressed."

"Okay." Elidra said and he left the room, closing the door behind him. Elidra got out of bed and stretched languidly, walking into the bathroom with new vigor. She felt great; it seemed that all she needed was a good night's rest.

As she rinsed the shampoo from her hair, she hummed a bouncy tune that she had heard on the radio by a guy named Jason Mraz. She had been enjoying it until Criss turned it away, mumbling something about a pink shirt. A sudden flash of memory speared across her mind and she cried out in pain, pressing the heel of her hand into her forehead and leaning against the shower wall.

The world spun and she found herself on her knees as she relived the memory. Old wounds opened again and red blood mixed with the soapy water going down the drain. The two long, parallel scars on her back tore open and she cried out again, dry heaving with tears running down her face. She felt something burning up her throat and she heaved, bright blood mixed bile spilling out onto the tile and circling the drain. She heard pounding on the door and a voice calling her name as if from a distance, the sounds muted. A hysterical thought entered her mind that she shouldn't have locked the door.

A long healed wound on her side opened again and she screamed as her ribs shattered. The tile under her was streaked red and she sobbed and screamed under the onslaught of pain relived. There was a far away bang and the shower door crashed back. She looked up through the tears and blood of head wounds reopened and saw people standing there, though she couldn't see their faces. She heard someone yell at someone else to call an ambulance and she prayed for the sweet release of unconsciousness. But it never came, no matter how much blood she lost, or how many wounds reopened. A long healed bone deep wound on her thigh split open and poured forth more of her lifeblood.

She thought she would go mad with the pain when suddenly, just as abruptly as it began it stopped and she was left sobbing and bleeding on the shower floor. Something warm and dry was wrapped around her, a blanket, and she was picked up in someone's arms and carried back into her bedroom. She could hear voices above her. Gotta stop the bleeding. Which wound? She lost too much. What the hell happened? You don't get these from falling in the shower. A voice barked at the others to be quiet and they fell silent. She felt warm fingers on her cheek and tried to open her eyes, but they seemed to be glued shut by blood and tears. Fingers pressed into her neck, feeling for a pulse and she tried to move, but her muscles refused to work. Her body was slowing down, she could hear her heartbeat loud in her ears, the spaces between the beats getting longer and longer.

_No!_ Michael's voice yelled in her mind and her heart jumped speeding up and beating normally. Only then did she slip into black abyss of unconsciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Criss was sitting in an uncomfortable hospital chair outside her room, listening to every beep coming from the machines inside. The ambulance had arrived shortly after her body had gone limp in his arms, his mind screaming at him that she was dead, that she had died in his arms. The paramedics had found a pulse though, it was slow but it was strong.

His mind flashed to the image of her curled up on the floor of the shower, her skin red with the blood from innumerable wounds. He put his head in his hands and didn't even look up when his brothers sat down on either side of him.

"How is she?" JD asked.

"Stable, finally. They managed to stop the bleeding." He said.

"I wonder what she broke." Costa said and Criss took his head out of his hands, looking at him.

"She didn't break anything."

"People's skin doesn't just decide to split open, three ribs don't just one day decide to shatter. She had to have fallen on something." He said.

"You saw, Costa, we all saw. She looked right at us. The only thing broken in that bathroom was her. You saw the cut on her leg…"

"I noticed a wound that I didn't before."

"No, you _saw_ it open. We all did. Why are you trying to deny what you saw?"

"Because its not possible, Criss. A person's body doesn't just decide to destroy itself. There had to have been an accident of some kind."

"I know what I saw, Costa. And I _saw_ cuts and gashes that weren't there a second ago."

"Costa is right, Criss." JD said. "You were in shock, we all were, you were seeing things."

"I was not hallucinating!" he yelled, leaping up from the chair. "I know what I saw, to hell what you guys _think_ you saw. Now I'm gonna go check on her, or are you going to say that her almost dying is just a figment of my imagination as well?" They were silent so he strode into the hospital room, stopping short at the sight of her lying there, wrapped in bandages and hooked to machines. He approached the hospital bed warily, going to sit down in the chair next to it. He looked down at her hand lying on the mattress, her wrist wrapped in thick gauze and a heart monitor hooked to her finger. Cautiously, he covered her hand with his own and slid his fingers under her palm, holding her hand gently. Her skin was cool and dry and she was completely unresponsive to his touch.

The doctor walked in and looked at them.

"How is she?" he asked.

"About to ask you the same thing." Criss said.

"Well, her blood cell and hemoglobin levels are normal, which is odd considering her injuries. The only thing that makes sense is her platelet levels, which are very high."

"You're losing me." Criss said and the doctor gave him a small smile.

"Her red blood cell and white blood cell levels are normal, those are the main parts of your blood, it also means that she doesn't have any kind of infection. Hemoglobin is the liquid part of your blood; those levels are normal saying that she didn't lose any blood. Like I said, odd considering her injuries. Platelets are the things in your blood that promote healing; her levels are greatly increased saying that her body is working on healing the numerous wounds. Internally there's nothing wrong with her. Externally, however, is a different matter."

"Do you have any idea on what caused this?"

"Medically, no. Logically, based on what you and your people have said," he paused and sighed. "No, it's not logically possible for what you told me happened to happen."

"But it did."

"And I understand that, if she had been cut by anything, there would be marks from the thing that cut her, but the edges of the wounds are clean and neat, no tool marks." He said and Criss nodded. "I'm just going to check her vitals now." The doctor said and did, declaring them strong. "You look after her and if there's any change, or if she wakes up, press the call button."

"Okay, thank you."

"Just doing my job." the doctor said and left. Criss looked at his watch and his eyes widened slightly at the time. It was almost ten. It was odd to think that he's been here for almost seven hours. Relaxing in the chair as much as he could, he closed his eyes and attempted to try to go to sleep.

Elidra opened her eyes as a wave of heat washed over her and looked over seeing Lucifer standing there, a smug smile on his face.

"Did you like my little gift?" he asked.

"You bastard. You did this to me?" she said and tried to sit up, but the stitches on her back pulled and she was forced to stay down.

"Who else? I just wanted you to know how badly I could hurt you. You would have died too, if that SOB Michael hadn't interfered."

"I hate you." She spat and he gave her a mischievous smile, walking around the bed to look at the relaxed form of Criss as slept.

"Very interesting human you've become attached to, Elly. Very interesting." He reached out to touch him but withdrew his hand quickly. The skin was blackened and the smell of burnt flesh filled the room. Criss stirred slightly but stayed asleep. He looked at Elly, whose eyes had bled ice blue.

"Try to touch him again and I'll kill you myself!" she snarled, her teeth bared. Lucifer shot her a murderous look and vanished in a flash of fire, Elidra's eyes going back to black. Criss chose this time to jerk awake and he looked at her, a slow smile coming to his lips.

"Hey." He said drowsily.

"Hey." She said he squeezed her hand gently.

"You gave everyone a scare."

"I'm sorry." She said and he stroked the back of her hand with his thumb.

"Don't be." He said and she started to pick at the bandage on her wrist. "Don't…"

"The tape itches, can you help me get it off?" she asked.

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Please?" Criss sighed and helped her take the bandage off her wrist, revealing the ugly stitches underneath. "Ick." She said looking down at them and he smiled.

"They'll heal." He said and she squeezed her eyes closed tight.

"Criss? I don't feel so good."

"You want me to call the doctor?"

"I don't know." She said and her eyes snapped open the irises now ice blue. Her skin started glow a bright luminescence, steadily growing brighter. He watched as the stitches on her wrist dissolved into the air, the wound healing over to smooth skin. He covered his eyes with his arm to shield them and didn't lower his arm until the light started to fade. Elidra's eyes darkened and she smiled at him, pulling the bandage on her neck off and feeling the whole skin. Criss joined in and they took off her bandages, looking at the previously broken skin in wonder. She turned onto her stomach and he undid the back tie of her hospital gown, peeling the gauze off her back and running his hand over her skin.

"I'm sorry Elly, the scars are still here." he said, tracing the thick lines with his fingers. Her body went limp on the bed and shook slightly. "I'm so sorry. I know how much you hate them." He said. She turned onto her back and he took her in his arms, holding her as she sobbed against his chest. After a while, she pulled away and brushed the tear tracks off her face with her fingers.

"Don't know why I'm complaining," she said sniffling. "I should be glad that I'm healed, instead I'm crying about two lousy scars." Criss tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek in his palm, smiling at her gently.

"I'm just glad you're alive." He said and kissed her forehead, pulling away with a peaceful expression. "Don't know how you do that."

"Do what?"

"Make me feel all…wooshy."

"Wooshy?"

"You know, wooshy. Relaxed, calm, mellow, not a care in the world." He said and she smiled, upping the feeling. "Stop that, you're gonna make me go to sleep again."

"So sleep, you look exhausted." She said and he sat back down in the chair, relaxing and leaning his head back, his eyes closing. "That chair can't be very comfortable."

"It's not." He said. Criss opened his eyes to the scuffling sounds and watched as Elidra made room on the narrow bed. "You serious?"

"Absolutely." She said and he got up, walking around the bed and carefully climbing in next to her.

"Thanks." He said and settled in. He had to press close to her so he wouldn't be lying on the absolute edge of the mattress, no matter how much room she gave him. Putting one arm around her shoulders and another across her stomach, he found a comfortable position and closed his eyes, feeling her lay her head in the hollow of his shoulder.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

JD and Costa walked down the hall towards Elidra's room; both of them tired and disheveled looking.

"Do you know what time Criss came back last night?" Costa asked through a yawn and JD shook his head.

"I didn't hear him. Must have left early this morning though, he wasn't in his room." JD said and stopped short in the doorway. "Or, he never left at all."

"What're you talking…oh." Costa said, peering around JD's back. "Aren't those…"

"The clothes he was wearing yesterday? Yup."

"Quiet." They both jumped and looked at the man leaning against the wall, his long blonde hair shielding his downward tilted face.

"Who're…" Costa started, walking around his brother to stand in the room.

"Shh." The man said looking up and pressing his finger to his lips, his green eyes glittering at them in amusement. "You don't want to wake them, do you? They need the rest." JD and Costa looked at the two sleeping on the hospital bed and back at the man, but he was gone.

"Where'd he go?" JD asked.

"He would have had to walk past us to leave." Costa said.

"Guys?" they looked back at the bed and saw Criss untangling himself from Elidra, who was also waking up, though slowly. "What're you doing?" he asked, sitting up and swing his legs around to sit on the edge of the thin mattress.

"There was a guy here, he told us not to wake you up." Costa said.

"And you didn't listen to him because…" Criss said, rubbing at his eyes.

"We didn't know who he was?" JD said.

"Oh," Elidra said, sitting up and sitting next to Criss. "Nice excuse."

"Besides, what the hell were you two doing?" JD asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Sleeping." They said in unison, giving him the same "are you kidding me?" look.

"Well, you two shouldn't be sleeping in the same bed." Costa said and they both perked an eyebrow at him.

"He was tired, and the chair was uncomfortable." Elidra said.

"Yeah, but you're hurt."

"No I'm not. Not anymore."

"That doesn't…wait…what?" JD said, looking confused and Elidra gave him a small smile.

"I'm…not…hurt…any…more." She said and he and Costa gave her confused stares. "Notice anything different?" Realization dawned.

"No bandages." Costa said.

"No stitches." JD added.

"Not even a scar. How is that possible?" Costa asked and Elidra shrugged, still smiling.

"No idea, but its cool. Not as cool as this though." She said and held up her hands. Elidra pressed her palms together and started to rub them back and forth, her eyes focused on them. Criss, Costa, and JD watched her with their full attention and she gave out a sigh, opening her hands and picking up the necklace that was nestled in her left palm. Criss let out a laugh and JD put a hand to his throat as he recognized the jewelry as the one he was wearing a second ago. He gave her a look that told her he was not amused and walked over, snatching the necklace out of her hand and putting it back on, this time tucking it under his T-shirt for safe keeping.

"Okay, how'd you do it?" Criss asked and she gave him a mysterious smile. "Come on! How'd you do it! JD's standing across the room and you never got off the bed."

"Girls' got to have some secrets." She said, giving him a wink.

"Come on! Tell me!"

"No! I'm not telling you!" she said. "Just like I'm not going to tell you how I did this." She pressed her hand to his throat over his choker and did the same thing to herself, closing her eyes. There was a slight tingling sensation and her hands dropped, her eyes opening. His choker was now around her neck.

"You have to tell me how you did that one!" he said as she undid the clasp and handed it back to him.

"Don't have to do anything." She said and he laughed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her in for a hug.

"Fine, fine. Be mysterious, I'll figure it out sooner or later."

"I'd actually like to see you try. You're never going to get it." She said and Criss mock-scowled at her. "So, guys." She said, looking at JD and Costa. "The man who told you not to wake us up. What'd he look like?"

"Couldn't see his face real well, but he had blonde hair and blue eyes." Costa said and Elidra blanched.

"No, he had green eyes." JD said.

"Are you sure? Green eyes, not blue." Elidra asked, all humor leaving her and her tone serious.

"Yeah, he had blonde hair and green eyes." JD said. "Who is he? Do you know?" she paused for a second.

"No." she said, but they didn't believe her.

"The man with blue eyes. Is he dangerous?" Criss asked.

"Why would you ask that?" She said, examining her nails.

"Because you tensed when Costa said he had blue eyes and relaxed when JD said he had green. Who is the one with blue eyes?"

"I don't remember."

"I don't believe you." He said and she looked away. "Elly." She didn't look at him so he grabbed her chin gently with his fingers, tilting her face back towards him. "If this man is dangerous, we have the right to know." His fingers loosened and he cupped her jaw.

"Yeah, you do." She said and sighed.

"Does he want to hurt you?" Costa asked.

"Oh, only as much as he can." She said as Criss' hand dropped to the bed.

"Will he hurt you?" JD asked. "Given the chance, I mean."

"Like I said, only as much as he can. Which is a lot. He'll kill me, if he has the opportunity to. I won't just be dead though, I'll be _destroyed_. He'll make it so you won't even recognize me." Elidra said.

"Will he hurt any of us?"

"No, he's after me, he wants me so he'll leave you alone. You're in no danger from him."

"Why's he after you?" Criss asked.

"He seems to think that I'm like him, that I'm just as, and I don't use this word lightly, evil as he is. I keep fighting him and he just wants me to know how badly he can hurt me."

"Why don't we call the police? Have him arrested?" Costa suggested and Elidra gave out a humorless laugh.

"Trust me, the police can't stop what they don't know exists."

"You mean they…"

"Don't even know who he is? Nope. He's never been caught and he never will be. He's too smart for that." She said.

"Are you a cop?" Costa asked but she shook her head.

"No."

"Fed."

"No. I just know what exists in this world that isn't all that nice." She said and he nodded. "Okay, on a less grim subject. How about we work on getting me out of here."

"I'll talk to your doctor." JD said and she smiled at him.

"Thanks." She said and he nodded, giving her a small smile back.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The doctors and nurses were astounded and confused by Elidra's unnaturally speedy recovery, but she was released later that day without problem. JD offered to take her back to the hotel so she could shower while Criss could go to the location of his next demonstration/illusion and begin preparing. They were stopped at a red light when JD spoke up.

"What are you, Elly?" he asked and she looked at him levelly.

"I don't know what you mean." She said, her voice toneless.

"No one heals that quickly. You were in surgery for 2 hrs while they stitched you up and you were completely healed in less than a day."

"I don't know what to tell you JD."

"Start by telling me the truth. What are you?" They locked eyes until a car beeped and he looked forward, the light had turned green. Putting his foot on the gas, he sped off.

"I don't know what I am." She said.

"You're lying, I know you're lying. I've had this feeling about you ever since Criss told me he found someone in the desert. I knew right then that you were normal, that you weren't human and I hadn't even met you yet. Tell me the truth, Elly. What are you?" she stayed silent until they reached the hotel and he parked, but he could tell she was thinking it over.

"You really want to know?" she asked finally.

"Yes."

"Did you tell any one else about this feeling?"

"No."

"Give me your word that you won't tell anyone what I am." She said and he paused. "JD."

"You have my word."

"I can't tell you, I have to show you, but not here, there's too many people."

"Where then?"

"Up in my room. It's the only place that I feel is secure enough." She said and he nodded.

The trip to her room was in tense silence. They walked into the room, Elidra closing and locking the door behind them. She went over the windows and drew the curtains closed, overlapping the edges so the windows were completely blocked off, throwing the room into darkness. Her advanced night vision kicked in and she saw everything in sharp relief while JD had to wait for his eyes to adjust. She stood in front of him and waited patiently.

"Can you see me okay?" she asked after a while and he nodded. "Good." she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. The air around her began to waver and swirl, phantom wind traveling through the room, pulling at their hair and tugging at their clothes.

"Elly?" JD asked.

"Quiet. I need to concentrate." She said, her voice barely above a whisper. Her eyes snapped open, the irises now ice blue. Her pale skin began to illuminate and continued to grow brighter. The light encompassed them and filled the room. JD cried out as everything she was flowed into him like water, her very essence filling his veins and coursing through his body with every beat of his heart.

Memories of her brothers flashed in front of his eyes, Michael and Lucifer and their friendly teasing. Countless sparring matches ending in cuts and bruises that healed quickly. Then there were memories of battles long since passed memories of deceit and pain, grief and loss. Memories of what she once was.

The light faded and he found himself kneeling on the floor, tears running unchecked down his face. He looked up at her as her eyes faded to black.

"My god…" his throat was raw and his voice was strained. "So beautiful." She held her hand down to him and he took it, allowing her to help him up.

"Now you know." she said, wiping the tears from his cheeks, a soft smile tugging at her lips. "You gave me your word that you wouldn't tell anyone. I expect you to honor that."

"Of course." He said, nodding.

"You going to be all right?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." She cupped his cheek in her palm and smiled at him gently, then turned and walked into the bathroom. The door closed behind her and the shower started soon after. JD went through the joining door to Criss' suite to wait.

Elidra stood in the newly cleaned shower, inhaling the steam from the water. The muscles in her back squirmed uncomfortably and she rotated her shoulders. It felt like there were worms under her skin, crawling around. The two long scars on her back burned and she adjusted the showerhead to the pulsating setting, turning her back on the spray so it could beat against the scars. The muscles shifted and spasmed and she shuddered as they squirmed under her skin. It eventually subsided and she continued with her shower, putting the spray back on its normal setting.

JD got up from the couch as the joining door opened; framing Elidra dressed in a black T-shirt with his brother's logo on it and a pair of jeans. She had pulled her damp hair over her shoulder and was braiding it with swift, practiced movements.

"Ready?" he asked and she nodded.

They arrived at the site of the demonstration as Criss was talking to the coordinators. The Nevada sun beat down on them with unrelenting heat, the air itself searing their skin. JD began to sweat the moment they left the air conditioned interior of the car but Elidra stayed dry, her body automatically lowering its core temperature to keep her cool. JD looked over at her and perked a smile.

"So not fair." He said and she smiled back.

"Hey you two!" they looked up and saw Criss walking towards them. "'Bout time you guys got here."

"We weren't gone for that long." JD said and Criss gave him a quizzical look.

"You were gone for almost four hours." He said and JD looked at Elidra in confusion who only gave him a Gallic shrug, which meant everything and nothing at the same time, in return.

"JD and I started talking, and I guess we lost track of the time." She said.

"Talking about what for four hours?" Criss asked, smiling.

"Getting to know each other. He told me about your family, and I told him what little I remembered about me and mine." She said.

"You remember your family?" he asked.

"A little bit."

"Like?"

"I have a brother named Michael, that's all I got though." She said and he nodded.

"More will come to you. Just give it time." He said, holding her shoulder reassuringly and she gave him a weak smile.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The demonstration went off without a hitch even though many people thought at one time or another that this was going to be the one to kill Criss. Elidra was the only calm one of all the crew and family present.

"Aren't you scared?" JD had asked her.

"No, he's going to be fine." She replied, somewhat sedately.

"How are so sure?"

"Azrael isn't here. He always is when someone is about to die." She said.

"Oh." JD said and paused then looked at her from the corners of his eyes. "You'd tell me if he was here, right?"

"Yes, JD, I would. I would also make sure he would go away alone and not with Criss."

"Okay." he said. "Thanks." This made her smile.

"No problem, JD. No problem at all."

After the demonstration had ended, they had all gotten something to eat since Criss was always starving after one of his demonstrations, or so Costa had said, and then headed back to the hotel. Nightmares began to plague Elidra's sleep again, often making her afraid to go back to sleep and leaving her pacing in her room, standing in front of the window and watching the sun rise over the horizon. She started taking the sleeping pills that the doctor prescribed again after Criss threatened to take her back to the hospital as her physical appearance started to show signs of wear. That and he said he's heard her pacing in her room very late at night and very early in the morning.

JD took their joining of spirit very well and there were no side effects like there had been with other people who had undergone the experience. Side effects such as death or a complete mental breakdown resulting in either insanity or a vegetative state. For that she was infinitely grateful and JD probably would have been too if she had told him what could have happened to him, but she refrained from telling him for his own mental well being. She knew she took a big risk in doing that with him, but it was the only way he would understand.

Elidra was currently pacing in her room very early in the morning. She cast a hateful look at the pill bottle lying on her bed and snorted, looking out her window at the Vegas Strip with all its lights. There was a knock on her door and he brow furrowed as she went to it, opening it and seeing Criss out there in just his boxers, his black hair disheveled and his eyes tired.

"Take the damn pill, Elly. Your pacing is keeping me up." he said, his voice demanding, but tired.

"No." she said and he sighed, walking into the room and making her have to back up.

"Elly…"

"I hate those pills, Criss."

"They'll keep you from dreaming."

"No, they won't, not anymore." She said and his brow furrowed.

"What do you mean?"

"I still dream when I take them, and its worse than before because this time I can't wake up from the nightmare and I'm trapped in it until the drug wears off." she said. "I'm so tired, Criss, but I'm afraid to go to sleep." A lone tear ran down her cheek leaving a glittering wake. She was suddenly encompassed in warmth and she slid her arms around Criss' narrow waist as he held her. His hand was at the back of her head, cradling it gently and keeping her pressed to his chest, his larger form wrapped around her smaller one as if he could protect her from the horrors her mind showed her every time she closed her eyes to sleep. She found herself sinking into the warmth and comfort that he was offering her and took it into her very heart, going into a kind of meditative state.

She was vaguely aware of when he picked her up in his arms, cradling her against his chest like a child and walked over to her bed, laying her down and joining her on the sheets, keeping her wrapped in his arms as he lay with her. His heartbeat was loud and steady in her ear and it calmed her further. He was warm and soft to the touch, but every time he moved, even minutely, she could feel the strength and power in the muscles that moved fluidly under his skin. Moving her head slightly, she settled her hand over his heart and opened up her mind, calling forth the power that made her what she was. She panicked for a moment when it didn't come, but then, like a tidal wave, it filled her with its brilliance.

Elidra received visions of Criss as a child learning martial arts and dance, excelling in both. She watched as he went from a somewhat scrawny teenager to a muscular man performing the arts he loved so much. Raw grief passed over her as she watched his father die in his arms, his body whittled away by cancer. Tears ran down her face anew as the visions continued. He was a creature of power and grace. He could cause so much pain and suffering in others, but the purity of his soul kept him from it, making sure that the thought did not even enter his mind. Going deeper, she found that soul nestled within him, its pure brilliance almost blinding her minds' eye.

The light cleared and she found herself standing in an open field. A small hand grasped hers and she looked down seeing a child version of Criss, his age no more than five or six.

"Hi." He said, looking up at her in curiosity.

"Hi, Criss." She said and the boy giggled.

"I'm not really Criss, I'm just a manifestation. Criss is all grown up now."

"But you were Criss at one time." She said and he shrugged.

"Very true. How did you get here?"

"I Looked." She said he nodded.

"I know what you are." He said and she started. "But I won't let on." he said smiling. He then held his arms up to her. "Pick me up?" he asked and she did, balancing him on her hip. He kissed her cheek and giggled.

"What was that for?" she asked, smiling.

"I like you." Criss said and her smile widened.

"I like you too, Criss." She said and ruffled his mop of dark hair, making him laugh.

"Can we go for a walk?" he asked.

"Of course." Elidra said and started to walk. The field seemed to stretch as far as the eye can see, but there was a dark edge of trees just off to her left. "Its weird, I never encountered a person's soul that was this peaceful."

"Well, based on the people who you've Looked into, I'm not surprised." The Criss on her hip said and she nodded. "It's not all peaceful though. The Monster lives here."

"The Monster?" Elidra asked and he extended his arm, pointing off into the trees. She looked and saw a pair of glowing red eyes.

"The Monster." He said and low growling reached their ears. Criss made a scared noise and buried his face in her neck. "As long we don't enter the trees, we'll be safe. The Monster doesn't enter the field."

"What _is_ The Monster?"

"Evil." he said simply and she shuddered as The Monster roared. "It is the evil that lives in all of us. Criss has it contained because he does not let it take control. Just please, don't enter the trees."

"What does The Monster look like?" she asked but the child shrugged.

"I don't know. I've only seen its eyes. They frighten me." Criss said and wrapped his arms around her neck. She started walking again, not knowing when she had stopped, and she could see The Monster following them, staying just inside the line of trees. They stopped for a moment and she let Criss down on the ground. They both sat on the soft earth and Criss put his arm around her waist, leaning against her. Elidra put her arm around him and he settled into her side. They sat facing the forest and Elidra looked into The Monster's eyes. She's encountered true evil before, and this thing, whatever it was, was not true evil. True evil looks down into your soul and leaves an unseen mark on you, true evil leaves you forever tainted. This thing, whatever it was, could not look into your soul, didn't have the power to.

"What are you?" she whispered and heard its growl again. Criss had fallen asleep at her side; his breathing steady and even and she very gently set him down on the ground, the soft grasses acting as a pillow for him. Getting to her feet silently, she walked to the edge of the trees and looked in, locking eyes with The Monster. "Who are you?" she asked and it snarled at her. "Answer me." She commanded at it roared.

"NO!" Criss suddenly pulled her back from the edge of the trees, burying his face in her stomach. "Don't go into the trees! It'll kill you!" she pushed him away gently and placed him behind her.

"I need to do this Criss, I need to know what this is." She said and he pulled at her hand, trying to pull her farther away from the line of trees.

"I told you Elly! I told you! It's evil!" he said.

"No, Criss, it isn't. This thing isn't evil. I've seen evil. This thing is a farce of evil." She said, looking right in its glowing eyes and it snarled again. Sharp white teeth flashed at her from the darkness and she snarled back, making it falter. Evil has left many marks on her eternal soul and it saw them, they were like new scars, red and angry, and they would be like that for all of eternity. Here, there were right out in the open for all to see. They did not seem to phase it much, because it recovered quickly, glaring at her from the darkness. "Get back there. I'm gonna settle this once and for all." she felt the child back up several steps and she approached the line of trees again. It met her at the edge and glared at her. She then took that final step and darkness encompassed her.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Hands wrapped around her throat, but remained loose, the fingers stroking her skin. Reaching up, she felt a dimpled chin, full lips, a nose and high cheekbones. Eyelashes brushed against her fingertips as it closed its eyes, surrendering to her.

"What are you?" she asked gently.

"Wanting." It said, its voice a crude, rough version of Criss'. It wrapped her in its arms, its cold skin making her shiver. "Elly. Wanting Elly." She felt its cool breath on her lips a second before it kissed her with a bruising force, its hands fisting in her shirt. It tore itself away from her and warmth returned as it backed away. "No!" it yelled. "Cannot have Elly! Cannot have light! Only darkness. Go away, light! Go away and leave Monster alone!" her night vision only allowed her to see a dark shape curled against the base of a tree, its arms shielding its head as if it expected her to hit it. She heard the child Criss' cries for her to come back from a distance, but she ignored them, her eyes fixed on the cowering creature in front of her. She sat down on the ground and hugged her knees to her chest. It moved its arms so it could look at her with those glowing red eyes. "Elly not scared of Monster?"

"No. Elly not scared of Monster. Elly seen many evil things. Monster not evil." she said smiling, and it uncurled itself, crawling towards her.

"Monster not evil? Monster told was evil." It said.

"Monster lied to. Monster not evil." she said and it sat in front of her.

"Elly nice to Monster." It said, its voice starting to smooth out. "Why is Elly nice to Monster?"

"No one else is." She said and those sharp white teeth flashed at her again, this time in a smile. The forest began to lighten as sunlight filtered through the trees. A beam of light hit Monster and it cringed, curling in upon its self again, its long black hair falling around its body. "Light won't hurt Monster." She said gently and it looked at her, the red of its eyes fading to dark brown.

"Won't hurt Monster?" it asked and she nodded. It took its arms away from its body and looked at the light shining down onto the ground. It placed its hand in that beam of light and laughed. "It's warm."

"Monster," she said and its eyes flicked to her from behind the thick dark hair shielding its face. She moved towards it and it watched her, waiting to see what she was going to do. Reaching up, she brushed its hair away from its face until it was completely bared. She smiled as she looked into Criss' face, cupping his cheek in her palm. "There, that's better." She said and he smiled.

Elidra came back to herself with a jolt that rocked her body. Criss was asleep next to her and she took her hand off of his heart, the red handprint fading slowly. His skin was cold and he shivered in his sleep so she grabbed the blanket and pulled it over them both, the pill bottle falling forgotten to the floor and rolling under the bed. Criss curled around her again and she willingly shared her body heat.

"I had the _weirdest_ dream last night." Criss said the next morning as they all ate breakfast.

"About what?" Elidra asked.

"Well you were in it, for starters." He said and every one looked at him with a perked eyebrow. "What? Oh! Perverts. That didn't happen. No, it was weird, we were in a field that had a forest to one side and it was like I was a little kid again and I was looking up at Elly. She was carrying me and we were walking through the field, and I kept warning her about something called The Monster that lived in the forest. And there was something in there, it growled and roared and had these creepy red eyes. Well after a while, we sat down and she left me and I must have fallen asleep or something because I look and see her at the edge of the trees, looking in on The Monster. I pulled her back and she told me to stand back and then she went into the trees.

Then I was looking down at her as if I were full grown and she was being really nice to me, I think I was The Monster at this point. She told me that I wasn't evil and she wasn't scared of me and that's when I woke up. It was so strange." He said.

"Criss?" Costa said.

"Yeah, Costa?"

"You need to see a shrink." He said and they all laughed.

"Yeah, I think you're right." Criss said, still laughing a little.

JD caught Elidra alone later that day as Criss was starting to make arrangements for the next demonstration.

"It wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked and she gave him tired eyes.

"No, it wasn't. I Looked into his soul." She said.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh come on JD. You saw what I'm capable of; you saw what I was created to do. What I did for several millennia. I Looked into his soul and I found a potential for evil." Elidra said and his eyes widened. "You weren't the only one who Saw something when we joined. I Saw into your soul and I Saw that same potential."

"Will you kill him?" JD asked.

"Did I kill you?" she asked but he stayed silent. "Exactly. I only kill those who let evil govern them. I Saw the potential and I tamed it."

"You got rid of it."

"No, JD. I tamed it, I calmed that need for violence, it was hurting and I soothed it. It wasn't evil, only a shadow of it." she said and he nodded.

"Thank you." he said but she waved it off.

"Don't thank me. I wasn't only a Destroyer I was a Prevention. I kept people who had that potential from letting it grow. It's what I did since the dawn of man." Elidra said.

"Another day's work?" JD asked and she snorted humorlessly.

"Something like that."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Criss was going over the details of his next demonstration.

"Okay, so this is what I was thinking. My straight jacket escape, I always do it hanging upside down from some kind of harness around my feet, right? Well how about this time, I do it falling out of a plane?" he said.

"You're not serious." JD said and he looked at him.

"Actually, I am. The parachute rigging will be on under the straight jacket and in order to get at it, I have to free myself from the jacket and pull the ripcord, all before hitting the ground. You guys, I've done this escape a thousand times." He said.

"Not like this though." Costa said. "Criss, if you aren't able to get out of the straight jacket, you won't be incredibly embarrassed like if you would be if you were hanging upside down from your feet, you'd be dead."

"People have survived hitting the ground from really far up. Look at Elly, for example. She fell from the sky, literally, and survived." He said and the camera swung to aim at Elidra, who was sitting on the floor at the back of the room.

"I don't know how I survived that Criss, hell, doctors couldn't figure that one out. I escaped with minimal cuts and scrapes, and as far as I know, that's kind of odd." She said and Criss shrugged.

"Still. You survived."

"Not the same. So not the same." Elidra said and he shrugged. "But what the hell, right? You're going to do whatever you want anyway. No matter what we say."

"What the hell does that mean?" Criss asked, his voice angry, but she remained passive.

"Nothing." She said but he wasn't giving up that easily.

"No, Elidra, what the hell did you mean by that?" her passive mask broke and they saw her anger.

"It means what it means, Criss! You take the warnings and you push them aside like they don't matter! Listen to your goddamn family! More over, I got a really bad feeling about this, I don't think you should do it!" Elidra said.

"Oh and we all know about your feelings."

"Excuse me? You know what, never mind. I don't wanna deal with this right now."

"What, you don't want to deal with confrontation?" Criss asked.

"No, I don't want to get angry enough to where I do something that'll regret the moment I do it."

"Like what?" Criss asked standing and she stood also, walking to stand in front of him.

"Like beat the shit out of you!" she said, her eyes flashed blue and her words hung in the air. She looked small compared to him, barely coming up to his collarbone, but there was a lot of power to her words.

"What are you PMS-ing or something?" he asked and she snapped. They didn't see her fist come up but everybody who was sitting jumped to their feet when Criss hit the floor, the side of his mouth bleeding. His eyes flashed gold and she understood his attitude. Her eyes bled blue as she looked down at him, her arms tensed.

"You get out of him right now." She ground out.

"Make me." Criss said, JD moved to help him up but Elly held out her hand.

"Don't touch him!"

"What the hell, Elly? You punch my brother and I'm not even allowed to help him up!" JD said.

"He's not your brother right now, JD."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"He's being ridden."

"Ridden? What does that mean?"

"He's being used by one of my brother's friends."

"Michael?"

"No, the other one." She said meeting his eyes and realization dawned.

"Oh, shit. Everyone, get away from Criss, now!"

"JD! What the hell is going on!" Costa demanded.

"Criss isn't himself right now, Costa, trust me and move back." JD said and Costa looked like he wanted to say something, but didn't, and moved back. "Elly, can you get it out?"

"Yeah." She said, cracking her knuckles.

"Without beating the sense out of Criss?" he asked.

"He's not Criss right now."

"But anything you do to it, you do to him, right?"

"Technically, yes."

"Well, I don't want my brother beat all to hell. So get it out of him, without causing him bodily harm."

"There won't be a lot."

"As little as possible." JD said and she nodded.

"Fine, as little as possible." She said and looked down at Demon/Criss. "Get out of him."

"Nah, don't think I will." Demon/Criss said, getting to its feet gracefully. "I like it here. Nice strong, healthy body."

"I'm going to ask you very nicely. Get out of him, please."

"Nope." It said, shaking his head. Again, they didn't see her move, but she suddenly had Demon/Criss pinned against the wall with an arm to his throat.

"Elly!" JD yelled.

"Shut up, JD, and let me do my job!" Elidra ordered and he fell silent. Her back tinged and she felt something hard bump against the back of her head. Reaching behind her, she grasped the hilt of her sword and pulled it out of the invisible sheath, looking at it admiringly. "It's amazing how I got this back. Thank you, Michael." She said.

"No problem, Elly." They heard and saw a man standing there in a T-shirt and jeans, his blonde hair pulled back away from his face with a silver clip and his blue eyes sparkling at her, his wings retracted into his back. "Just kill the bastard."

"Arch Angel." Demon/Criss said, pure terror very clear on its face.

"You got nothing to worry about from me, Demon, it's her friend you're inhabiting. I'm just going to watch." He said, a smile on his face and walked with bare feet over to the couch, reclining on the arm. "I have no tolerance for your kind, she has even less."

"You won't do anything." Demon/Criss said looking at Elidra. "Kill me, you kill him."

"My sword like this would kill you both, you're right. Under other circumstances, I would consider it an acceptable loss. But this," she said and the sword burst into flames. "Is a bit over the top." She said and looked at the sword, it shortened to a short sword, only about a foot long, flames still licking along its surface. "Much better." She said before burying it in Demon/Criss' stomach.

"No!" JD and Costa yelled and Elidra pushed the blade in deeper, bruising him with the hilt. Demon/Criss looked at her with pain-filled eyes, its hands coming up to grasp her shoulders.

"Elly?" Criss asked and went limp. Elidra put her arms around his shoulders and pulled him away from the wall. The sword vanished into his stomach as he was pulled away, leaving the Demon behind, the sword pinning him to the wall. Elly cradled Criss in her arms as she lowered him to the floor and looked up as the Demon disintegrated into ash.

"Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust." Michael said and pulled the sword out of the unmarred wall. "I'll be taking this back now."

"Thanks for your help." Elidra said, looking up at him and he gave her fond smile.

"No problem, little sister, none at all." Michael said and vanished. She turned her attentions back to the unconscious man in her arms and looked at JD and Costa as they knelt down.

"You killed him." JD said, tears in his eyes, but she shook her head.

"No, JD, he's alive." She said, and as if to prove it, it was that moment that Criss opened his eyes.

"Elly?" he asked, looking up at her, "What happened?"

"You passed out." she said. "You got up to show us something and just collapsed. Scared us all half to death."

"Passed out?" he asked and she nodded.

"Yeah, you should really learn not to push yourself so hard. Stuff like this will happen." Elidra said and he attempted to sit up, but ended up needing her help.

"I feel a little light headed." He said and she brushed his hair away from his face.

"What do you remember?" JD asked and he looked at him.

"Not much. I remember telling you guys about the escape I had come up with and then, nothing, it all goes blank." He said, leaning slightly against Elidra's side. He licked his dry lips and winced, putting his fingers to his mouth and coming away with blood. "Why am I bleeding?"

"Well you did land on your face." Elidra said and he gave her an embarrassed smile.

"Did I really?" he asked and she nodded. "Well then, how did I get on my back?"

"You didn't think we were going to leave you like that, did you?" she asked and he chuckled.

"No, guess not." He said. Jennifer appeared with a water bottle and he took it from her. "Thanks." He twisted the cap off, taking a long swallow from it.

"Think you can stand?" she asked and he nodded. Elidra supported him with her arm around his waist and his arm flung across her shoulders and helped him get on his feet. "Feeling okay now?"

"Still light headed." He said and they moved over to the couch so he could sit.

Much later that day, long after the sun had sunk below the horizon, Criss was following Elidra's suggestion and resting in his room. The rest of the crew had left the suite and JD and Elidra were alone in the 'living room'.

"Passed out?" he asked and she nodded.

"Well I couldn't tell him he had been possessed by a Demon, now could I?"

"But everyone saw…"

"They'll remember him passing out. The power of suggestion and all that. They weren't touched by it like we were. They don't have the knowledge that we have."

"But the camera crew filmed it." JD said but she waved it off.

"The tapes will show him standing up to show us something, like how the parachute equipment will be strapped on, and collapsing. It'll show us rushing to his aid and me turning him over and holding him in my arms, getting him to wake up." Elidra said and JD put his head in his hands.

"He's fine, JD, really he is." She said, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"I thought you kill him, Elly. I saw you stab him with that blade and all I could think was 'she killed my baby brother'. Even though I trusted you would kill that thing inside him and not him, that's what I thought." JD said.

"I know, but it was the only way I could kill it. It wouldn't leave him, so I had to stab him as well." Elidra said.

"But he's not hurt." JD said, looking at her.

"The Holy Blade only works on Demons and Devils." Elidra explained shortly and he nodded, standing.

"I'm going to go and get some sleep. It's been a weird day."

"Good idea, go get some rest. I'm going to stay here and make sure there isn't a repeat performance."

"You really think they'd try again?"

"You never know. Demon's are incredibly persistent, they'll do just about anything." she said and he nodded.

"Good night, Elly."

"Good night, JD. Turn the light off on your way out, please." She said and he left, turning the lights off. Elidra relaxed on the couch and sighed into the darkness off the room. She rested her head on the back of the couch and yawned.

She must have fallen asleep because she woke up as she was being carried into Criss' room. He set her down on the mattress and climbed in next to her.

"How do we always wind up in the same bed?" she asked and he smiled at her, a flash of white in the dark.

"Just lucky, I guess." Criss said. "Now go back to sleep, it's late." He said, drawing the sheets and blanket over them.

"Hold on a second." There was some scuffling and wiggling as she undid and kicked off her pants, rubbing her legs together in relief. "That's better." She said and he laughed. They curled up together on the bed, her in a pair of underwear and a bra and shirt, and him in only a pair of boxers, and went back to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Despite his "fainting spell", Criss went along with his plans for the escape, but under Elidra's suggestion, he took it easy. He was confident that all would go well, and so were his team as they continued to smooth out details. JD and Costa relaxed as much as they ever did with these things, but Elidra's nerves became more frayed, almost to a breaking point.

She stopped sleeping again, and Criss often lay in bed staring up at the ceiling, listening to her pacing in her room. Had it been day, he never would have heard her footfalls on the thick carpet, but the silence of the night enhanced them. Rolling onto his side, he hugged the second pillow on the bed to his chest and listened to her pace. For almost a week after he fainted, she shared his bed and he found that he had gotten used to her warmth, to the sound of her breathing next to him. She had nightmares every night she managed to fall asleep, and in those few days that she slept next to him, he woke up every night hearing her whimpers of pain and fear.

Then she left his bed for her own and he missed her warmth and the sound of her heart.

A few weeks later, his skydiving lessons had ended and he and his instructors were confident that he would be able to escape the straight jacket and pull the ripcord in time to float safely down to the ground. JoAnn and his mom were due to fly in so he drove out to the airport to pick them up. He gave and received hugs and kisses and they all got back into the car.

"Oh, before we get back to the hotel, there's something I have to tell you." Criss said.

"Yes?" Dimitra asked.

"There's someone staying with us, her name is Elidra, and she's," Criss paused as he tried to find the words. "Very difficult to describe, but she is a good friend and I trust her. You two will like her, I know you will." He said and gave them a smile.

When they got back to the hotel, JD and Costa were waiting for them outside and they both gave their mother a hug.

"Where's Elly? I thought she'd be out here waiting for us." Criss asked Costa while they were on their way up to the room.

"She said she wasn't feeling very well, so she's laying down." He said and Criss nodded.

"Good, maybe she'll finally get some sleep." He said.

"Worried about her, too?" Costa asked.

"I think we all are." He said.

When they got back to the room, Dimitra and JoAnn made their greetings to the crew while Criss quietly crept into Elidra's room, looking at her as she laid on the bed on her side.

"Hey, El, I'm back." he said but she didn't move. "El?" he asked, but again, no movement. He went to the side of the bed and knelt down, putting him on the same level. Her face was calm and devoid of emotion, her lips slightly parted. "Elly?" he whispered. "Elidra?" he was starting to get scared at her lack of reaction. No one sleeps this deeply. He touched her cheek gently, running his thumb along her cheekbone.

"Criss?" he looked up and saw JoAnn standing in the doorway. He then noticed the lack of air moving across his hand, since the heel of his hand was in front of her mouth. His head snapped back to look at her and he pressed his fingers to her neck, but her skin was still.

"JoAnn, call 911!" he said looking at her but she didn't move. "NOW!" he yelled and she ran to a phone. He picked Elidra up from the bed and set her on the floor, pressing his fingers to her neck again but again found no pulse.

"Criss!" JD and Costa ran into the room just as Criss began doing CPR. "What's going on?" JD asked.

"Elly's not breathing and her heart isn't beating." He said as he did compressions on her chest, then bent down to breathe into her mouth. "Come on, come back to us." He whispered and she coughed, taking in a large rasp of air. He pressed his fingers to her neck once more and found a pulse, but it was weak. "Stay with us this time, okay?" he said, cupping her cheek but her eyes didn't open, nor did she respond to his touch in anyway. She was so pale her lips bloodless and her face gaunt. "Stay with us."

Elidra was lying in the hospital bed, hooked up to a respirator. She had stopped breathing en route and her heart had stopped beating. The paramedics had managed to get it going again, but she was still unconscious. Criss, JD, Costa, JoAnn, and Dimitra were sitting out in the hall, JoAnn holding Criss' hand tightly in her own. He had a faraway look in his eyes and his hand was limp.

"She'll be fine, Criss." JoAnn said but he didn't seem to hear her. "The doctors are doing everything they can. She'll be fine." He stood abruptly, and JoAnn's hand slid away. He leaned in the doorway of the hospital room and looked at her as she lay unconscious. Her hand twitched and he went to the side of the bed, touching her skin gently. She was cold. Her eyes snapped open and she fought to breathe against the tube down her throat. Her heart monitor started to beep rapidly and nurses rushed in, peeling the tape off the skin around her mouth and pulling the long tube out. Elidra bent over with racking coughs while the nurses took her pulse and other vital signs. Criss pressed a glass of water into her hand and she drank down the fluid greedily, some of it spilling around her mouth and dripping onto the hospital gown. She drained the glass and he took it from her as she flopped back onto the pillow, breathing deeply. She swatted away the nurses as one would swat away a fly and they left the room. JD and Costa came into the room and joined Criss at her side.

"How ya feeling?" Costa asked and she gave him a weak smile.

"Tired." She said, her rough voice barely above a whisper.

"You scared us all half to death, Elly." JD said and she managed a weak laugh.

"Sorry." she said and her eyes flicked to behind them as if something caught her eyes. "Hello." She said and they looked over their shoulders seeing JoAnn and Dimitra standing there, looking as if they didn't know what to do.

"Oh, Elly. This is our mom, Dimitra." Criss said and the older woman stepped forward. Elidra held her hand out to her and they shook hands gently before Dimitra pulled away.

"It's very nice to meet you." She said and Elidra gave her a smile.

"It's very nice to meet you too, Mrs. Angel." She said and they all laughed. "Did I miss something?"

"Angel isn't my real last name." Criss said.

"Call me Dimitra." She said and Elidra nodded.

"And this is my girl, JoAnn." Criss said and the blonde woman came forward. He laced his arm around her waist and she leaned against him slightly.

"Pleasure to meet you, JoAnn." Elidra said and JoAnn nodded at her. "Now if you excuse me, almost dying has made me tired."

"Come on, guys, lets leave Elly to rest." JD said and they made their way to the door.

"JD?" Elidra said and he stopped, looking at her. "Can I talk to you for a second?" she asked and he nodded.

"I'll be out in a bit." He said to the rest.

"Close the door please." Elidra requested and he did after reassuring the others again.

"What was that all about?" JoAnn asked Criss as they stood outside the room.

"Elly and JD have a really good friendship, they talk a lot and whatever she tells him, he tells us." Criss said.

"Why doesn't she just tell us herself?" Dimitra asked and Criss shrugged nonchalantly.

"I don't know. Never gave it much thought."

Back in the room, JD stood at the foot of the bed with his arms crossed over his chest.

"What do you mean, 'he's here'?" he asked.

"Azrael is here in this very room." Elidra said and her eyes went to the angel. He was standing next to JD in his bright green robes, his long golden hair falling past his elbows, contrasting with his dark skin. His robes matched the color of the large parrot wings growing out of his back. His hands were clasped in front of him politely and he smiled at her when they locked eyes. The other man was of course, completely oblivious to the angels' presence.

"You said he only shows up when someone is about to die." JD said, his brow furrowed.

"Yes, I did, and I was telling the truth." Elidra said.

"Who's going to die?" he asked, still not getting it. She locked eyes with him and his went wide.

"No." he said, shaking his head but she nodded.

"Yes. My body is failing, JD. My heart is growing weaker by the second. I'm dying." She said.

"There must be something you can do. That healing thing you did."

"The damage is too severe."

"But you healed yourself after being cut to shreds. You can't heal a damaged heart?"

"No, like I said, the damage is too severe. I will die, whether I want to or not. Trust me when I say," she looked Azrael right in the eyes. "I don't want to." Azrael just gave her a sad smile.

"What do you want me to do? I can't just stand here and watch you die." JD said, his voice growing strained.

"I'm not, and I couldn't, ask you to. I want you to go out there and tell the others I want to be alone. That I'm very tired and I just want to rest all by myself. Knowing Criss and his previous actions, he'll want to come in here and keep me company. I can't have that. I don't want any of you, most of all him, to see me go. Understand?" Elidra said and JD nodded. "Now go." He went reluctantly to the door. "And JD," he paused. "Goodbye. I truly valued our friendship."

"Elly…"

"I'll always be watching over you, and Costa, and Criss. You know most of all that I mean literally watching over you. Now go, it's almost time. Azrael is getting impatient." She said and indeed the angel was tapping his slipper-clad foot inaudibly against the linoleum. JD left the room with one last look to her and she gave him a soft smile before he fled the room. She listened intently as he delivered her message to the others and looked at Azrael again.

"It's time, Elly." He said and she sighed.

"I know, Azzy. I was just hoping for more. I wanted more time with them. I wanted to tell more jokes, hear more stories. But all things must come to an end, huh?" she asked, her eyes tearing up and he nodded. He unclasped his hands and gently laid his hand on her shoulder.

Everyone jumped to attention as loud beeping came from the room. Nurses rushed past them into the room.

"She's crashing! Get me the paddles!" a nurse said. "Clear!" A jolting sound rang out. The beeping turned into a drone. "Clear!" No change. "Clear!" No change, just that one long note. "I'm calling it. Time of death, five fifty-six PM."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Elidra and Azrael stood in the room hand in hand as the guys came in to say their good-byes. The brothers couldn't see them, but they might have gotten the feeling that they weren't quite alone in the room. Criss very hesitantly touched her body's hand and then wrapped his fingers around it.

"She's cold." He said his voice flat and pulled the blankets up a little more as if it would keep her warm. Tears ran down Elidra's face as she watched him and she let go of Azrael's hand, approaching the bed and looking at him from across her body.

"Criss." She said and his head snapped up, his eyes on her. He couldn't see her of course, but he had heard her voice.

"What is it?" JD asked, his eyes glittering.

"I swear I just heard her." He said looking at him. "I just heard her say my name."

"Criss, she's gone. She didn't say anything." Costa said, his voice thick.

"Guys, I think she's here in this room. Her soul, her spirit, whatever you want to call it, I think its here with us." Criss said and they gave him sad looks. "Come on, guys! She wasn't normal when she was alive, why should she be now that she's…" his voice trailed off and he looked at the body on the bed, a silver tear rolling down his cheek. Elidra wanted to brush it away but instead she just reached out and touched his cheek. His own hand came up and touched the spot, his eyes wide. "I just felt her. I just felt her touch me." Elidra walked around the bed and laid her hand on JD shoulder, then went to Costa and put her arms around the smaller mans shoulders from behind like she always had when she was alive. They were roughly the same height; she was slightly taller, so it was no problem. "You guys felt her, didn't you?" Criss asked as he saw the looks on her faces.

"She's hugging me." Costa said, tears making tracks down his face. "Right now, she's hugging me."

"Right now, at this very moment." Criss said and Costa nodded.

"I can actually feel her arms around me. People say that when a ghost touches you, it feels cold."

"But when she does it, it feels warm." JD finished and Costa nodded. "She touched my shoulder." Costa shuddered.

"She's gone, I can't feel her anymore." He said and hugged himself. "Now I'm cold." He said, smiling almost nervously. Elidra walked around them and back to Criss, standing next to him. She rested her hand on his where it was settled on a side bar of the bed. Going up on tiptoe, she kissed his cheek and he started to cry more openly.

"She just kissed my cheek." Criss said and Elidra concentrated, making her voice more powerful.

"Goodbye." She said and they all started.

"You guys heard that, right?" Criss asked and they nodded.

"She wanted to say goodbye." JD said and Elidra went back over to Azrael, their hands linking together.

"Ready to go?" he asked but she shook her head.

"No, but I know I have to. So let's go." She said and they vanished from the room.

They reappeared in a sterile white hallway and she looked around.

"This is it? The infamous white light? There's no disembodied voice saying 'Elidra! This is your life!'" she asked and Azrael snorted.

"You've spent way too long around the humans." He said and she shrugged, flashing him an innocent smile. "Yeah, okay. Innocent…right." He said and she laughed, leaning against him. He wrapped her in a hug and she buried her face in his robes, inhaling his cool, clean scent.

"You always smell like mint." She said, her voice slightly muffled and he smiled. "Why do you always smell like mint?"

"It's the tea I drink." He said and she nodded against his chest. After a while she pulled away and looked up at him with a smile.

"Shall we go and see Pete?" she asked, referring to Saint Peter.

"Yeah, sure, why not." Azrael said and they walked down the hall arm-in-arm. Azrael opened the door at the end of the hall for her and they went through, the door closing behind them.

"Ah, so this is what they look like from this side." Elidra said, looking up at the massive golden gates. She crossed her arm over her chest and tilted her head to the side as if she were looking at a piece of art. "A little over the top, don't you think Azzy?" she asked and looked at him.

"I never liked how shiny they are. It annoys me that they always stay clean." He said and she snorted. They approached the white podium, a very bored looking older man standing behind it with a large ledger in front of him.

"Got a new one for ya, Pete." Azrael said and Peter snapped to attention.

"Oh, hi Azrael. Didn't see you walk up." He said with a yawn.

"Hey Pete." Elidra said and he looked at her casually.

"Hey El." He said, but his head snapped back to look at her, his eyes going wide. "Elly! What in His name are you doing here?"

"I died." She said. "Heart failure."

"The Fallen Ones human forms are so poorly made, the work is so shoddy. For His sake, put some pride into your work!" Peter said rather animatedly, but she just shrugged.

"What're you going to do?" she asked rhetorically. "So am I in, or what?"

"Oh well, lets check the book." He said and looked into his ledger, flipping the massive pages as he searched for her name. "Ah! Here you are! Let's see where you went wrong. You swore,"

"So?" she asked but he ignored her.

"Had impure thoughts about that Criss guy,"

"Only once! Did you see what he was wearing? Or should I say what he _wasn't_ wearing?" Again, he ignored her.

"Drank,"

"And hated it."

"Smoked,"

"Just to see what it was like! Costa seems to enjoy it, but I coughed for like five minutes!"

"And ate red meat." Peter said.

"And it was yummy. Besides, those last three aren't sins." Elidra said.

"I know, but they're very bad for your health." He said looking at her and she chuckled. "Sorry El, can't let you in."

"For those little things?"

"Nope, just isn't your time yet. You're going to be shot back down again. He's got a plan for you Elidra, a big plan according to his mood lately. A big, important, Earth moving, change-history-forever plan. A…"

"Okay! Okay! I get it! It's a big plan! Any idea on what it is?"

"Not a clue." Peter said, leaning with one elbow on the podium and looking down at her. "You know how mysterious He can be sometime. I mean, heck, he never informed any of us when he made the Earth. It was just like BAM! and there it was. The humans believe it took seven days, ha! More like seven seconds."

"Six and a half." She said and he perked an eyebrow at her. "He had me time it, wanted to beat His own record for planet forming. He was off by two and a half seconds, only took Him four to make Pluto."

"Then again, look at Pluto's size compared to Earth's."

"That's what I told Him. Wouldn't hear it. Kept saying He would beat it next time."

"Think He knows something we don't?" Azrael asked and she looked at him.

"Doesn't He always?" she said and he shrugged.

"Okay," Peter said and they looked at him. "Get on back to your body. See you in a few months."

"Got it. It was nice seeing you again, Pete." Elidra said and he gave her a small smile.

"Always nice to see you, El." He said and the moment he slammed his book closed, she vanished from in front of him.

When Elidra came to, she realized she was lying on something very hard and very cold and in a place very dark. There was something covering her face and she jerked it away with her hands. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. Reaching above her head, she felt the cold metal and banged on it, feeling it give slightly. She hit it again and the metal latch broke, the door swinging open. With her hands braced against the sides, she rolled the metal slab she was lying on out of the cooler and into the morgue. It was dark save for a single small lamp on the desk in the corner. Using that dim light, she examined herself and was relieved to find no autopsy marks. She must have been scheduled for tomorrow, thank goodness for small blessings.

Sitting up, she wrapped the sheet around her and got off the slab. Reality rushed into her in a great wave and she fell to her knees with racking coughs. Her chest felt like it was going to explode as her heart found its rhythm again. Eventually, it subsided and she got to her feet. Hopping on one foot rather ungracefully, she ripped off the tag that had been on her big toe of her other foot. She dismissed it without even looking at it, throwing it over her shoulder and out of her mind. In the silence of the morgue, she could hear the soft padding of someone walking down the hall towards the room she was in.

The door swung open and a young woman poked her head in. Her eyes adjusted and went wide as she looked at Elidra standing in the middle of the morgue wrapped in a sheet, the slab still out of the cooler.

"Hi there. I must this be a terrible shock, but you don't think I can get some clothes, do you?" Elidra asked and the woman's only response was her eyes rolling back into her head and her body falling to the floor in a dead faint. "I'm guessing that's a 'no'."

He w


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

As it turned out, shortly after she had been pronounced and the guys came in to say their good-byes, Criss had been given all the things that Elidra had been wearing when she was brought into the hospital. Save for her shirt since the paramedics had cut it off. She was kind of sad about that… she really liked that shirt. It was one from Criss' online store and said 'Screw Reality' on it. She had giggled for a good minute when she had first seen it, couldn't recall why.

The night shift doctors and nurses were surprisingly unsurprised at her resurrection, as if it happened all the time. They had offered to call Criss or someone on the Mindfreak Crew, but she had politely turned them down. They did give her a pair of pink maternity ward hospital scrubs and booties to wear, of which she was eternally grateful. She had kept getting stares and leers as she walked down the halls wrapped in the sheet with a doctor who kept apologizing profusely. They had allowed her to use the staff showers before hand so her hair was washed and she was clean, her wet hair pulled into a bun at the back of her head.

Elidra was surprised at how hungry she was, finishing off two trays of mess hall food with ease, before relaxing in the chair with her hands on top of her full stomach. It seemed that all it took for her to relax was for her to die.

She got out of the cab, the fare paid for by the hospital, and walked through the front doors of the Aladdin Hotel, pulling the white lab coat she had been given to put on over her scrubs tighter around her body and ducking unseen into the elevators. After the doors closed, she pressed the button for the right floor and relaxed against the mirrored wall. The elevator stopped prematurely and the doors opened, four women getting on board. They gave Elidra's scrubs a look over and dismissed her quickly, laughing to each other quietly and started to talk amongst themselves in hushed whispers. Fine tuning her hearing she was able to pick up on what they were saying.

"What she escape from? A nut house?" one asked, looking at her over her shoulder.

"Probably a rehab center. You see how skinny she is?"

"What do you think she was in there for?" another asked and they all looked at her in what they thought was a discreet manner before turning away.

"Heroin, definitely heroin." The elevator stopped again and Elidra's eyes went wide as Lucifer stepped on, his blonde hair as always braided behind his head and his expensive looking suit immaculate. The girls stopped talking about her the moment they saw him and fluttered nervously, hands fixing hair and pulling down shirts to expose cleavage. He gave them a predatory smile as he glided past them to stand next to her, leaning against the wall.

"Hello, Elly. Weird seeing you here." he said, not looking at her but at the display showing what floor they were on.

"What are you doing here?" Elidra asked, inching away from him.

"Business as usual." He said.

"Someone sell their soul again?"

"A few people actually. Business is booming here in Las Vegas."

"Well I'm very happy for you, now go away." she said and he laughed, the sound making her shudder unpleasantly.

"Oh dear baby sister, I'm not here for you. Like I said, I'm here on business. You get a reprieve this night."

"Color me surprised. Freshly resurrected, I thought I would be on the top of your list."

"Careful what you say around them." Lucifer warned, tilting his head at the women who were watching and listening carefully.

"Oh please, they already think I'm a crazy heroin addict. I doubt I could say anything that would shock them." she said and gave them a vicious smile. Her eyes went to Lucifer as he leaned into her slightly, dropping his voice to a purr.

"It would be so easy to scare them, Elly. It would be so easy to break their fragile little minds. Almost pathetically easy. You want to, I can feel it. You hate how they look down at you. You, the Great Elidra, slayer of demons and devils for as long as Time can remember."

"I'm not that anymore."

"You'll always be that, forever, and you know it. Nothing can change who and what you are. I've seen firsthand of what you're capable off, what carnage you can deliver to your enemies." He said and she looked at him with sad eyes. "What?" he asked, taken back.

"You don't remember, do you?" she asked.

"Remember what?"

"Why I Fell. You're the reason." She said and he looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean?" he asked and she embraced him suddenly, putting her hand over his heart and sending him the memory.

The bodies of angels and demons littered the ground. The fighting has long since stopped, and the war was over. The Holy Kingdom once again the victor. Elidra stood amidst the carnage, her sword and skin stained with the blood of countless demons. She was tired and wounded, the gash in her side and the three shattered ribs sending spears of pain throughout her body every time she moved. Movement caught her eye and she hobbled towards it, her hand tightening around the grip of her blade.

_Lucifer was wounded heavily and near death. Not even the Mourning Star could survive this fight. He would survive though; he always did, unless she ended it now. All she had to do was pierce his heart with the Holy Blade and he would be dead forever. She approached him and stood over his barely moving form. He tried reaching for his weapon, but found it out of his reach. Holding her sword in two hands, she raised it over her head and aimed it at his chest._

_That's when he looked up at her. His blue eyes were fogged over with pain but there was a flicker of recognition._

"_Elly?" he asked and she faltered. "We are a mess, baby sister." He said, attempting to smile with cracked and bleeding lips. His eyes went to the sword and he looked at her again. "I see. Going to kill me then? Go ahead, I'm harmless now anyway. Out of strength, can't reach for my sword. I can't fight back." his body was racked by coughs and he cried out in pain as it jarred his broken bones. "Go ahead, El. Kill me. You're my sister Elly, I'd rather it be you." he said but she didn't take the deathblow. Instead, she flung the sword aside and crouched by him, taking him very gently into her arms._

"_I can't do it. God help me, I can't kill you." she whispered as she wiped the blood off his face with the corner of her filthy white robe._

"_I'm the enemy, Elidra. You have to." He said, looking up at her._

"_You're my brother, Lucifer. I love you." She said, beginning to cry. She didn't hear the demon come up behind her, its' sword unsheathed._

"_No!" Lucifer cried out and flung out his hand, the demon screaming as it was incinerated. She looked back and then looked at him. "I'm truly spent now. If anyone could show me mercy and love, I knew it would be you."_

"_No games?" she asked and he chuckled but stopped as it hurt him._

"Too tired for games. Besides, I hurt too damn much." He said and she leaned down, pressing her lips to his forehead gently. He vanished from her arms and she stood, gathering her sword and slipping it back in the sheath along her spine.

They came back into themselves with a jolt and he looked down at her, tears running down his face.

"You could've…" he started.

"But I didn't." she finished and they embraced again, his arms around her tightly this time. "He found out and I was punished."

"I'm sorry I pushed so hard, if I had known what you had done for me, what you had sacrificed for me I wouldn't have pushed at all. I'll leave you alone from now on, Elly. You have my word." The elevator dinged and she looked at the display. At some point the girls had gotten off and they were alone. The door opened and she pulled away from him.

"This is my floor." She said and walked out of the elevator. He followed and watched her as she walked down the hall.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Elidra wiped tears from her eyes as she made her way down the hall to Criss' suite. Sniffling slightly, she pressed the "doorbell" and waited from someone to answer. She heard the inside door open and then the main door. Criss looked out at her, shock very clear on his face. His hair was messed up and it looked like he has been crying heavily.

"Elly?" he asked.

"Hey, Criss." She said and she found herself in his arms as he cried into her shoulder.

"I can't believe it's really you." he said, pulling away and looking at her. "But how? You were dead. I heard them pronounce you, we all did."

"Let's go inside, I'll explain everything." She said and he nodded.

"It is really you, right?" he asked and she nodded.

"It's really me, Criss." She said and they went inside, the door closing behind them.

"Meditation." Criss said after she told him what had happened, his voice unbelieving.

"Yep, meditation."

"Hun, you weren't meditating. _You were dead_." He said.

"Some Buddhist monks can reach a state of meditation so profound that their heart and vital signs stop."

"You're not Buddhist, nor are you a monk. Besides, for six hours?"

"That's how long I was gone for?" she asked and he nodded.

"Yeah."

"Wow, seemed less time than that. Seemed like only a couple of minutes, half an hour at the most." Elidra said and he sighed.

"I felt you. _We_ felt you. You were in that room with us only you weren't in solid form."

"Out of body experience." She said, waving it off.

"_You said 'goodbye', Elidra!_" Criss yelled, jumping to his feet from where he was sitting on the couch.

"Okay, that I can't explain." She said, backing away a little bit. Criss sighed again and sat back down heavily on the couch, his head in his hands. She walked to stand in front of him and crouched down. "Hey." She said and he took his head out of his hands so he could look at her. There were tears in his eyes and he looked almost lost.

"You were dead, Elly. I don't care what you say really happened. I know you were dead. We both do. I don't know how you're back, I don't know what force brought you back, but you are back."

"I guess God had a plan for me." Elidra said.

"And hopefully that plan involves you being with us for the rest for our lives. You may have only been with us for a handful of months, but you grew into us, you're a part of everyone now. If only you could have seen the teams' faces when I told them you had died. It was if I told them the world was ending. They're out mourning you right now, Elly. Getting very drunk, I'm sure," Elidra chuckled at this, making Criss smile. "But mourning you all the same." She fell back and landed on her butt, wrapping her arms around her knees loosely, looking up at him with those obsidian eyes. He reached down and cupped her cheek in his palm, running his thumb back and forth over her cheekbone. She reached up and touched his hand, wrapping her fingers around it and bringing it to her lips, kissing his fingers.

Elidra stood and Criss stood with her, towering over her by a few inches. Putting his hands on her shoulders, he moved closer, their bodies brushing against each other very slightly. His hands slid up her neck slowly to cup her face and her eyes closed at his touch, her body going soft and pliant.

"Elly." He whispered and her eyes opened, looking up at him. His head lowered and it was at that point that the doorbell rang.

"Shouldn't you get that?" she asked.

"Ignore it." He murmured and their lips were a hairsbreadth apart when the door swung open. Criss released her and jumped away as far as he could without tripping over the couch.

"I knew it!" JoAnn exclaimed. "I knew you were cheating on me with some…some…" she looked intently at her. "Elidra?"

"Hiya JoAnn." Elidra said, crooking her first two fingers at her a few times in a variation of a finger wave.

"Aren't you supposed to be dead?" she asked.

"Sorry to disappoint you." she said and turned to Criss. "My room still my room?"

"Yeah." He said nodding, his eyes wide and slightly scared.

"Okay, then, I'll leave you two alone to…talk." She said and went to the conjoining door, opening it and stepping into her room.

"_Your rooms are connected!_" she heard JoAnn yell right before she closed and locked the door. She blocked out the battle happening next door and flopped down on her bed, peeling the booties off her feet and throwing them in the trash. Getting out of the hospital scrubs and leaving them where they fell onto the floor, she brushed her teeth and went to bed, more tired than she realized. The sounds of JoAnn yelling and Criss trying to calm her down being her twisted lullaby.

Elidra woke as someone sat down on her bed. She just barely made out the dark shape and she waited until her night vision kicked in.

"Criss?" she asked.

"Hey, El." He said, his voice very tired.

"What's up?"

"JoAnn left me. She didn't trust us not to sleep together, but for some reason, I don't think this was a spontaneous action."

"I don't think I understand."

"We've often had fights about my demonstrations, especially my more dangerous ones. Like when I was buried alive, hung by fishhooks, and put through a wood chipper, the list goes on. I guess they just whittled away at her nerves until finally she couldn't take it anymore. She just needed a reason, and I gave it to her. Also, she didn't like how I was always gone, always working, always 'thinking up new ways to kill myself' was how she put it. We were dying, and I didn't want to see it." Criss said.

"Sounds to me like she doesn't trust you, not us."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"She doesn't trust in your abilities to do what you have to. She doesn't trust your team enough to think of every possible thing that could go wrong and guard against it. She doesn't trust that they'll take care of you." Elidra said.

"Can I sleep here tonight?" he asked.

"No." Elidra said.

"Why not?" he asked, his voice surprised.

"Because if you do you'll be looking for something I can't give you."

"What's that?"

"Physical intimacy. We've shared the same bed a dozen times. We've curled up together, shared our warmth, but you're looking for that one last step, and I can't give it to you, not while you're like this. I'm not going to apologize either." She said and he sighed, hanging his head.

"You're right. You're always right." He said.

"Not always. I make mistakes, just like everyone else. No go to bed, Criss. _Your own bed._" he got up and walked to the door. "And Criss?"

"Yeah?"

"What almost happened in your room can never happen again."

"Why?"

"It just can't. We may want it to, there may be opportunities for it to, but _it can never happen again._ Do you understand me?"

"Yeah." Criss said.

"Now go to bed, and get some sleep, and we'll see where we are in the morning."

"Okay. Good night Elly."

"Good night Criss." He left the room, closing the door behind him. Elidra stayed awake for a while after he left, staring up at the ceiling. She didn't get back to sleep until the first blushes of dawn streaked across the desert sky.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Criss was sitting in the living room drinking coffee when the crew showed up.

"Where's JoAnn?" JD asked.

"She went back to Long Island, caught the first flight out this morning." Criss said, not looking at him.

"Why'd she do that?" Costa asked but he didn't answer him, just stared intently into his coffee cup. "Criss?" the conjoining door opened and Elidra stepped out fully dressed, pulling her hair up while a wide yawn split her face.

"Good Morning." she said as she walked over to the breakfast tray that had been sent up to the suite and poured herself some orange juice from the pitcher.

"Criss?" JD asked as he watched her. "Why is Elly haunting us?" Criss didn't answer but Elidra went over to JD and poked his arm. "Oh my god! Elly!" he exclaimed and moved to hug her, but she held up a hand.

"Let me set down my juice so it doesn't go all over the place." she set the glass down on the table. "Okay." she said and laughed as he wrapped his arms around her waist and picked her up in a bear hug, her feet dangling a few inches off the floor.

"You're alive! You're alive! You're alive!" he exclaimed over and over again.

"Yes, JD, I'm alive." Elidra said, still laughing. "Now put me down, you big brute, so I can say 'hi' to everyone else!" she said and he set her on her feet. Costa came over and slid his arms around her shoulders from behind. She put her hands on his arms and smiled, letting her head fall back onto his shoulder. "Hiya, Costa."

"How is this possible?" he whispered into her shoulder. "How are you alive?"

"Just am, Costa," she whispered back, her voice cracking. "Just am."

"What was it like?" he asked. "What was it like being dead?" everyone went quiet as they waited for her answer.

"It was peaceful. Quiet, and serene. My family and friends surrounded me, I told jokes and stories with them. We were all just sitting around, getting to know each other again. And then, I was back here. I woke up in the locker of the hospital morgue."

"That must have been scary." Banachek said.

"It was a little nerve racking, but I made it out of there with my sanity intact, or as much it was before, anyway." she said smiling and they chuckled.

Later that day, Criss was talking about the upcoming escape while Elidra doodled inattentively on hotel stationary. Banachek came up behind her and looked over her shoulder at it.

"What's that?" he asked and she focused on it. Loopy, complicated writing filled the page with neat columns. Her eyes widened slightly as she recognized the written form of the Angel's Language. Her mind translated the glyphs and she swallowed as she read the battle decree.

"It's nothing." She said and tore the paper off the pad, crumpling it up and throwing it at the garbage can. It hit the rim and bounced off and she got up, dodging the cameras and picking up and throwing away the paper. She went back to her seat where Banachek was still waiting.

"You got rid of it kind of quickly, must not have been nothing." He said.

"Really, Banachek, it was nothing. I was just doodling." She said. One of the camera guys called over to him so he could do an interview, sharing his thoughts on the escape. "You're up, Sparky." She said and he smiled.

"Really wish you wouldn't call me that." He said and ruffled her hair. She knocked away his hand with a scowl and pushed at his chest lightly, making him rock back a little. He smiled at her before walking away to do the interview.

That night, after everyone had gone to bed, she was sitting on the floor of her room, writing in the notebook that Criss had gotten for her at her request. She couldn't seem to stop writing in the Language, every time she tried to write in human; it turned into an Angelic glyph. Half the notebook was already filled with battle decrees, death speeches, commendations for valor, and so on. One quote kept making an appearance between each phrase. "On swift wings you will save the innocent." What did it mean? It couldn't have been talking about her. She killed. She didn't save. She wasn't in charge of saving that was a Guardian's job, not a Soldier's.

Slapping the pen down on the paper, she sighed and put her head in her hands. Her head was pounding and her back spasmed every once in a while, the long scars burning and tingling. Pushing the notebook away from her, she lay on her floor, staring up at the blank ceiling. Dark spots began to swim in front of her eyes and transformed themselves into glyphs. Elidra blinked several times and her vision cleared.

Hoisting herself back up into a sitting position, she reached forward and grabbed the notebook, starting to write again.

The next day was the day of the escape. Tension was at an all time high on the way to the site and nerves were frayed to the breaking point. Even Elidra was worried; there was something not right about this. Some dark cloud was hanging over them this day.

They met with the pilot and Criss went over what was going to happen with him and them one more time.

"Before I get on the plane, they're going to strap the parachute rigging on me and then put a straight jacket over it, securing the jacket. Then, when I'm up in the plane I'm going to jump out. In order for me to pull the ripcord, I have to first get out of the straight jacket in less than two minutes. If I mess this up, I'm dead." He said.

"I've got a bad feeling about this, Criss." Elidra said and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in for a hug.

"I'll be fine, I've done this a thousand times."

"Still got a bad feeling about it." She said against his chest.

"It'll be over before you know it and you'll see that you worried for nothing." He said and she pulled away.

"Okay, if you say so." She said.

"I think you should listen to her, Criss." Costa said. "I have a bad feeling about this too."

"Come on you two! I'll be fine." He said laughing. "We've ironed out all the wrinkles; nothing is going to go wrong."

"Wow, Criss." JD said and he looked at him. "Never knew you to be this cocky." Criss' smile faded.

"Not cocky, JD. Confident. Now let's do this." Criss said and began to stretch out his shoulders and arms. He stripped off his shirt so there wouldn't be as much pressure of the parachute rigging against the straight jacket. If the jacket were too tight, he'd never be able to get it off. The aircrew strapped the harness onto his bare chest and then helped him into the straight jacket, securing his arms and tightening the buckles and straps.

They all watched as he was helped into the plane and the engine started, the plane starting down the long stretch of dirt road in the middle of the desert. The plane took off and vanished into the blue sky.

"Okay, guys, can you hear me okay?" a radio had been put into Criss' ear that transmitted to a handheld device that JD had.

"Can hear you loud and clear. How's it going?" JD asked.

"It's going great; we're almost at the altitude. Is Elly still twitchy?" Criss asked and JD looked at the woman from the corner of his eye.

"More so now that you're off the ground."

"Tell her to relax. Okay, we're at altitude, see you on the ground."

"See you on the ground. You going to keep the radio in?"

"Yep."

"Okay, we'll be silent as the grave to let you concentrate."

"Thanks. Okay, I'm jumping." A loud roaring sound emanated from the radio as air rushed past the receiver. "Guys?"

"Yeah Criss?" JD asked.

"Something's wrong." He said and their blood ran cold.

"What?" JD asked.

"I can't get one of the straps free. There's a little give, but it's stuck."

"Say that again."

"The strap is stuck. I'm not going to be able to get free. Tell mom and everyone that I love them, I'm not going to survive this."

"Criss keep trying." JD said, his voice becoming panicked.

"There's nothing I can do, JD. The strap is jammed. I'm not going to get free in time. I guess Elly was right. Tell her that I'm sorry I doubted her." Criss said and Elly grabbed the radio out of JD's hand.

"Criss, it's Elly. You have to keep trying." She said.

"I'm so sorry I doubted you, El. I just want to say, I'm glad I was the one to find out. I'm breaking radio contact now, goodbye." The radio went dead.

"Criss!"


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

The restraint was jammed but Criss fought against it anyway, fighting to free him self as he fell to his certain death. They say never to look down, but he did, seeing the ground rushing up to meet him too fast. He was never going to make it. There was no way he was going to make it out alive on this one.

Down on the ground, everyone watched in horror as Criss fell out of control. He's long since broken off communications with them after telling him that he couldn't get out of the straightjacket and the only thing they could do was watch. Elidra backed up, breaking away from the crowd as the muscles in her back squirmed and spasmed. This time, it didn't stop. The scars burned and her shoulders popped.

Her back squirmed as it felt like thick, hot fluid was being poured over her skin. Her back bowed; her shoulders hunching in towards her chest and soft feathers brushed her arms as her wings extended outwards. Tears ran down her face as she looked at them, reaching up and stroking the thick joints.

"What…the…hell?" she heard and looked up, seeing them looking at her.

"I have them back." She said, looking at JD.

"Save him." JD said, tears running down his own face.

"I plan on it." She said, her eyes bleeding ice blue. Elidra dropped into a runner's stance, her wings extending outwards fully. Time seemed to slow and when the wings came down, the force of air knocked them back. When the dust settled, they saw her up in the air, a mere speck against the blue of the sky. She streaked across the sky towards the falling figure, but she was going too slowly. There was a sonic boom and she rocketed off, streaking faster than their eyes could follow.

The wind pushed her hair back away from her face; her blue eyes focused on Criss. She flew up past him and turned, plummeting down, her wings folded tight against her body. She reached out her arms as she got close enough to make out the dark crescent of his eyelashes against his skin.

Something soft brushed against his lips and jaw and he stopped falling, hovering gently in the sky, the rhythmic sounds of air being moved caressing his ears. Strong arms held him like a child, cradling him protectively. He opened his eyes and was met by dark, dark hair. Inhaling deeply, his mind recognized the scent.

"Elly?" he asked and looked up, seeing her looked down at him, her eyes darkening. "But how?" he then saw the glittering white wings supporting them, keeping them still in the air. "I'm dead. I hit the ground and I'm dead and I'm in Heaven." He said and she laughed, the melodic sound brushing against his mind.

"You're not dead, Criss." Elidra said, amusement accenting her voice.

"Am I dying?"

"Not today." She said and he very carefully looked over his shoulder, looking down at the ground so far beneath them. He could see dark specks that could only be his family and crew and he looked back at her. The sun shining down on them gave her a halo of light; shining off of her hair and making her seem even more ethereal. As he shifted his body carefully, her arm around his shoulders repositioned to hold onto him and he pressed his ear to her chest, listening to her steady heartbeat and closing his eyes. He felt as they started to descend slowly, the air caressing his cheek.

Criss' eyes opened when her feet met solid ground and he heard his family and crew running towards them. She put him on his feet and undid the straps of the straightjacket, it took her a while to get open the jammed one and when she did, it released his arms and he was able to pull the jacket from his body. She helped him take off the parachute equipment and it dropped to the ground. He then turned to her and eyed the large wings.

His family and crew stopped when they got to them and JD automatically wrapped her in a hug, crying into her shoulder.

"Thank you thank you thank you." He kept saying over and over again. He backed away and she was almost knocked to the ground as Costa just about tackled her, crying unabashedly into her neck. He broke away from her after a little while and she touched his cheek gently, wiping away the tear tracks. His eyes darted to Criss and back to her and she nodded. Costa backed away and Criss approached carefully.

"What are you Elly?" he asked and she smiled at him.

"You know what I am." She said.

"You're an angel."

"Was, Criss, was an angel." She said.

"I don't understand."

"It's a long story."

"I want to hear it."

"I know." She said and paused, "I have to go."

"Where?" he asked and she shrugged.

"I don't know. Around, I guess. Maybe I'll come back, maybe I won't. I don't know. If I don't come back, just know that I care about you all so much." She said and walked towards him, stopping when she was standing in front of him, looking up at him. "I'll say this now, incase I don't come back. Goodbye Criss and thank you for everything." Going up on tiptoes, she kissed him gently on his slightly parted lips, her eyes closing. Warmth spread through his body and down to his very core. He pressed back against her mouth, his eyes fluttering closed as they kissed gently. His hand came up to lace in her hair and he tilted her head to the side, giving him better access to her full, soft lips.

She backed away, her lips just barely touching his.

"Goodbye Criss." She whispered against his mouth before pulling away, his fingers leaving her hair to trail along her cheek as she pulled away, backing up until she was out of arms reach.

Her wings extended upwards and came down with a gust of air, knocking dust into the air once again. When it cleared, she was a dark speck in the sky. She flew across the blue expanse and they watched her until she vanished from sight.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

His mind still reeling from the events of the day, Criss barely saw the things around him as he went straight through his suite and into his bedroom. The straight jacket had been examined, and it was discovered that the strap that had jammed had ripped all the way to a hole and had wrapped around the side of the buckle, effectively keeping it from moving. The edges around the tear had been ragged, so it seemed that gradual wear and use had resulted in the malfunction. How they didn't catch it was beyond him.

That was all past now and they were just glad he was alive. Thanks to Elidra, he was going to live to fight another day.

"Jesus Christ." He said as he flopped down onto his bed. "She's an angel." He said as he stared up at the ceiling. The image of her wings sparkling in the sunlight flashed before his eyes. They had been huge, the wing span easily over twelve feet. The top arc stretched two, three inches above her head and the tapered tip brushed ever so slightly against the sandy ground. He had wanted to touch them so badly; the feathers had looked so soft.

Heaving himself up, he stripped down to his boxers and climbed under the covers, going to sleep quickly, the image of Elidra's wings chasing him down into that black abyss.

Halfway across the world, Elidra lay on the ground and stared up at the England night sky. Her calves dangled over the edge of the white cliffs of Dover and her wings were withdrawn into her back. The sounds of the waves crashing against the rocks and small beaches soothed her and it seemed that the stars were extra bright tonight. Waving her hand over the sky, the stars rearranged themselves into Criss' image and she sighed. She waved her hand again and the stars righted themselves.

"Stop thinking about him." she whispered to herself. "You're never going to see him again. You can never see him again and thinking about him won't do you any good. It was just a kiss goodbye, nothing more nothing less. So stop thinking about it. He was just happy that you saved him. He kissed back out of gratitude. The time in his room, he was happy that you were alive. So stop thinking about him." Groaning, she ground the heels of her hands into her eyes and blinked rapidly to clear her vision. She lay there until the sun started to rise and got up, standing on the edge of the cliffs and looking down. She turned her back to it and teetered on the edge. Crossing her arms over her chest, her hands on her shoulders, she leaned back and then she was falling.

Criss woke as he heard soft footfalls outside his window on the balcony. Getting up, he ran his fingers through his hair and went to the doors, unlocking and opening them.

"Elly?" he asked looking out at her.

"Hey, Criss." She said and moved as if she were going to take a step forward but decided against it, instead wrapping her arms around herself as if she were cold. He was the one who took the first step, reaching out to hold her arms lightly.

"You're cold." He said and started to rub her arms.

"England is cold this time of year, they're just getting out winter."

"England?"

"Dover." She said. "The White Cliffs to be more exact."

"Where did you go? What did you do?" he asked.

"I needed to think about some things. So I went to the Eiffel Tower, Great Wall of China, and the White Cliffs of Dover. It was quiet in those places, and I needed the quiet."

"Did anyone see you?"

"Maybe a couple of people," she shrugged. "But they won't remember it."

"How's that? I can't stop thinking about it, Costa wouldn't stop talking about it, and JD, well JD hasn't said a thing."

"They would have to be in physical contact with an angel for them to remember it. I don't understand it myself." She said.

"So we'll remember?"

"Yes, but anyone who did not come in contact with me will not."

"Oh. They're going to think we're crazy."

"They'll get over it." She said and shivered.

"Come inside and warm up." Criss said and put his arm around her shoulders, leading her inside and shutting the balcony door behind them. He went up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her slight frame against his body, noting that she tensed as soon as she felt him. "You're freezing." He whispered into her ear and she relaxed a little, but very little. "Relax, Elly. You're safe."

"I'm never safe." She whispered her voice sad and tired.

"You're safe with me." He murmured and kissed her tense shoulder. "Nothing can get you here, now relax."

"Do you truly know what I am, Criss?" Elidra asked.

"You're an angel."

"I was an angel. I'm a Fallen now."

"A Fallen Angel." He said.

"Yes. I broke the rules and was cast out of Heaven."

"What did you do?"

"I refused to kill Lucifer."

"Satan."

"Yes, Satan."

"Why didn't you kill him? He's evil." Criss asked and she sighed, pulling away from him.

"He's also my brother." She said and walked to the other side of the room, then turned and faced him. "And he's not evil."

"He's the ruler of Hell. How can he not be evil?" Criss asked, his brow furrowed.

"You don't know him like I do. He has a good heart. He's just hurting."

"Hurting. He condemns souls and tortures people for all of eternity because he's _hurting?_"

"Criss, try to picture it like this. There's you and your brothers, but then your mom has three more children and commands you to attend to their every beck and call and to worship the ground they walk on. No questions asked, and any one who argues will be disowned."

"But that's not fair."

"No, it isn't. Then imagine that you refused and said that they should attend to you that you're better than they are because you were born first and you and your brothers were your mothers' favorites long before the new children were born. Then imagine that she kicked you out of her house and her heart and abandoned you. How would you feel?"

"Horrible. I love my mother." Criss said.

"Just like Lucifer loved our Father, but when He created the humans…"

"When he created us."

"When he created the humans, he told us that they were better than us in every way. Lucifer refused to worship the mud creatures and was cast out because of it." Elidra said.

"Mud creatures?"

"When our Father first made you humans, he made you out of mud." Elidra explained.

"Oh."

"He gave you free will. You could refuse him and not be penalized, but if we refused him, we would be severely punished. Does that sound fair to you?"

"No, no it doesn't."

"Lucifer is in pain, he's been in pain for several millennia. His torment is a torment that will last for all of eternity. I love my brother so much, that's why I couldn't kill him."

"How is he your brother?" Criss asked.

"He's not technically by brother because my kind and I were never born, we were created, but we were created in batches. Lucifer, Michael, and I were created at the same time. That's why Lucifer and Michael and twins. We just call each other siblings because we might as well be."

"Do they look like you? With dark hair and eyes?"

"Nope, they're both blondes. Michael has green eyes, Lucifer has blue. I think He did that so He could tell them apart, they're just about identical as it is." Elidra said.

"Do you want to go back to that? I mean, do you really want to leave and go back to Heaven?" Criss asked and she answered without hesitating.

"Yes." She said.

"Why? If you have no choice in anything?"

"Because it's the only home I've ever known." She said.

"This could be your home. I could be home to you." He said, sounding like he was almost in pain.

"It doesn't matter anyway. On the one year anniversary of my Falling, I will be given a choice. Choose the side of "evil" and be with Lucifer down in Hell, or choose the side of "good" and go back to Heaven and as much as I love my brother, I'm going back to Heaven."

"And what if you choose neither? What if you choose to stay here on Earth?"

"That's not an option. If I don't choose one of those two, I will be destroyed."

"Just like that?" Criss asked and she nodded.

"Just like that." She said and he sighed.

"Tough break."

"Not really, I know what one I'm choosing already."

"Will we remember you once you're gone?"

"Yes. He's not about to go back on His own word and take away your free will, and memory is a part of free will." Elidra said and hugged herself, shivering again.

"You still cold?" he asked, going over to her and she nodded.

"You're taking this awfully well."

"I was saved by a Fallen Angel today, I think I'll believe just about anything at this point." He said and hugged her, allowing his warmth to sink into her skin. She yawned against his chest and he looked at her. "Tired?"

"It's been a very long day." She said and he nodded.

"No kidding." Criss said and picked her up in his arms, carrying her to his bed and laying her down onto the soft mattress. Sitting on the bed next to her, he placed his hands at her waist, his fingers sliding under her shirt and across her skin. He started to slide her shirt up, revealing more and more of smooth, pale skin but her hands on his stopped him.

"No." she said and he sighed, removing his hands.

"You're so beautiful, Elly." he said, cupping her cheek in his palm.

"It can't happen, Criss. It can't." she said and his hand slid away. He climbed over her and lay on his side of the bed, drawing the blankets over both of them.

"Why did you kiss me?" he asked.

"I didn't think I was coming back. It was a good bye kiss." She said.

"Why did you come back?"

"I realized that I would miss you guys too much." She said, "And someone has to keep Dexter out of trouble, and all my things are here." She said and he smiled.

Criss curled up against her side, his legs tangled with hers, his arm around her waist and his head on her chest, listening to her heart beat. He fell back to sleep feeling her fingertips stroking his hair.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

When Criss woke, he was alone in the bed. Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he sat up and looked around.

"Elly?" he asked and his bathroom swung open, Elidra walking out in a towel with a plume of steam following her. Her hair was wet and her skin was flushed.

"Good morning." She said smiling.

"You showered?"

"Nope, I stuck my head in the sink." She said and he gave her a blank look. "Yes, Christopher, I showered. You have no idea how much pollution I flew through last night. I had to fly low when I was in London just so I could see."

"Can I see them?" he asked and she gave him a quizzical look. "Your…" he made gestures to his back.

"Oh." She said and smiled. "Sure. I don't see why not." Her eyes closed and her shoulders shook slightly. White wings emerged from her back to curl around her body, her shoulders bowing in towards her chest. She relaxed and they did with her. Getting up from bed and pulling his boxers further up on his hips, Criss stood in front of her and eyed them.

"Can I…?" he asked, raising his hand and she nodded. He laid his hand very gently on the feathers and moved his hand up and over the top arch. They were silky and slightly cool under his palm and he smiled. The feathers covering the main bones were soft and fine like downy feathers while the feathers of the wings themselves were large and wide, almost as big as his hand and as wide as his palm. He ran his hand back up and she made a sound.

"With the feathers." She said and he smiled nervously.

"Sorry." He said and stroked the wing with the direction of the feathers.

"That's better." She said sighing.

"So soft." He whispered and moved his hand down to the joint in the back, feeling where her skin attached to the wing joint. Skin changed to feather smoothly and he ran his fingers down that line where skin and feather met. When his hand met the towel, he was surprised to find that it had moved aside to allow her wings, the fabric still covering her skin but keeping her wings free.

"I should get going." She said, her voice somewhat breathy.

"You're leaving again?" he asked.

"I'm going to my own room." She said smiling and he nodded.

"Oh, right. You should probably get dressed first."

"Who said I was using the door?" she said winking at him and vanished. Criss smiled and went into his bathroom to shower.

Not wholly surprised that she had returned, the team greeted her as if they would any other day, but the fact that they couldn't exactly remember the happenings of the previous day probably had something to do with it.

"Elly!" Costa exclaimed when he saw her and grabbed her hand, dragging her out of the hotel suite.

"What was that about?" Dexter asked to no one in particular.

"No idea." JD said, fully aware that Dexter didn't remember.

"Holy Crap!" Costa exclaimed excitedly when the door closed behind them. "Yesterday…Criss was…and you were…and….and…!" he said and Elidra laughed.

"Costa, babe, complete sentences." She said and he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

"Okay, Criss was going to die and you saved him." He said and she nodded.

"Yep, sounds about right." She said.

"You were flying."

"Yeah."

"_With wings."_

"Nothing gets past you, does it?"

"How did you do that?" he asked and she smiled.

"Ask your brother."

"Which one? JD or Criss?" he asked and she shrugged.

"Pick one." She said and went back into the suite.

Later that night after everyone had left; Criss called his brothers and Elidra into his suite for a meeting.

"Okay, guys." He said starting to pace. "We've always been…protective of Elly, but things have changed."

"Damn straight." Costa said.

"If anything, now we have to be even more protective of her. If someone found out what she was, she could be in serious danger." He said.

"Criss, I can take care of myself." Elidra said and he looked at her.

"I don't doubt that, but people will freak if they find out what you are. They won't understand and you might get hurt." He said and she sighed.

"I understand that, but I can take care of myself, as I've said before. I'm not a Guardian, Criss."

"Guardian?" Costa asked.

"Guardian Angel. They're real; they look like cute and cuddly little cherubs. The humans have so many pictures of them because they are the kind that is seen most often." She clarified.

"Oh." Costa said and went silent.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but believe me, this is hard for me too. I'm breaking a lot of rules telling you guys this. The mere fact that I saved Criss' life broke the rules. He was supposed to die and I changed that." She said.

"Did you see Azrael?" JD asked and the other two men looked at him as Elidra thought about it.

"No, I didn't. He was nowhere to be found yesterday." She said.

"You were meant to save him. You told me that Azrael only shows up when someone is about to die. Since he was a no-show…"

"He wasn't destined to die."

"Nope, he wasn't." JD said smiling.

"What's going on?" Criss asked. "Why does JD know so much about this already?"

"JD's known for a while now what I am. He wanted to know after I got out of the hospital that time with the incident in the shower, and I told him. Showed him, actually." Elidra said.

"How?" Costa asked.

"Blending of souls, I Flowed into him and he Saw." She said.

"It was beautiful, and heartbreaking. I was sad, and happy, and angry all the same time. All of the emotions and sensations I felt, no words can describe it. The only way to truly understand, is to experience it." JD said solemnly.

"They never will truly understand what I am unless they See, will they?" Elidra asked.

"No, I don't think they will." JD said and she stood from the chair she had been sitting in.

"JD, will you please turn out the lights?" she asked and he stood, flicking the light switch and casting them into darkness.

"Should I leave?" He asked. "I've already been through this."

"No, you can stay, you just won't be affected by it this time around." She said and stood in the center of the room.

"Elly?" Costa asked. "What's going to happen?"

"I'm going to let you See." She said and light exploded outwards from her body.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The light faded and Elidra fell to her knees, her head falling as she fought to breathe. JD made a move towards her after turning on the lights but she held up her hand.

"I'm fine, just give me a second. Check on them, make sure they're okay." She said waving her hand at the two men still sitting.

"Costa?" JD asked and Costa snapped out of his trance.

"Holy crap!" he exclaimed. "That was incredible. I mean, my god. Criss…" Costa's voice died off as he looked at his younger brother who was just sitting there, his head back on the couch and his unblinking eyes staring at the ceiling. "Criss?" there was no response.

"Elly, something's wrong with Criss." JD said and Elidra sprang to her feet, going to Criss and kneeling on the couch next to him.

"Hey, Criss? Can you hear me?" again, there was no response. Elidra turned his head so she could look in his eyes but it just rolled back into place. Swinging a leg over his thighs, she sat in his lap and took his face in her hands, looking him in the eyes. "Criss, if you can hear me, let me know." She said and there was a flicker in his eyes.

"What's wrong with him?" Costa asked.

"I don't know." She said and stroked Criss' cheek with the back of her fingers. "Come on back to us, Criss."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" JD asked.

"There's one thing, but it's complicated, and his mind might be already too far gone."

"What do you mean?"

"It's a possible side effect, I wasn't going to tell you, but in some cases, a human's mind shuts down after going through a Blending. It doesn't start back up again."

"So my brother may be a vegetable for the rest of his life because of this?" JD asked.

"It's better than the other possible side effect."

"Which is?"

"Homicidal insanity."

"Okay, this seems to be the lesser of the two evils." Costa said. "There's got to be someway to bring him back."

"There is, but like I said, it's complicated."

"Just do it!" JD exclaimed.

"Okay." Elidra said hesitantly and closed her eyes, breathing deeply. Taking Criss' face in her hands again, she titled his head so she could look him in the eyes. Her skin began to glow, the light seemingly coming from within her. Moving even closer to him, she gently pressed her lips to his and the light filled the room, blinding them.

When it faded, Criss had his arms around her, one hand laced in her hair while the other was pressed into her back under her shirt. They kissed with fierce intensity, Elidra's body pressed against Criss' intimately. JD cleared his throat and they broke apart.

"And here I thought I was dreaming." Criss whispered against her flushed lips. "Though, it still might be a dream. After all, why else would you be straddling my lap and kissing me?"

"Do you often have dreams of you and me making out with your brothers watching?" Elidra asked.

"That's a little too creepy; I guess I'm not dreaming." He said and she patted his cheek before climbing off his lap to sit next to him on the couch, her back against the arm and her legs in Criss' lap.

"How ya feeling, Criss?" Costa asked.

"I'm a little lightheaded." Criss said, putting his hands on Elidra's legs. "But other than that, I'm fine."

"What do you remember?" Elidra asked.

"I remember memories that aren't mine." He said looking at her and smiling. "That should scare me, I know, but it doesn't. In fact, it makes me happy to know that I know more about you than I ever possibly could before."

"I didn't share everything with you guys. I controlled what I let you See."

"What didn't you let us see?"

"The Angel Wars, for starters. Shortly after Lucifer descended, he led a campaign of his followers against the Holy Kingdom. There were three wars and he lost all of them. I also didn't let you see why I Fell, but it doesn't matter in your case because you already knew. I just let you guys know that I am in fact a Fallen Angel."

"Why did you Fall?" Costa asked.

"Short version, Elly refused to kill Lucifer because he's her brother and she loves him. She got kicked out for not ending the life of the Ruler of Hell." Criss said.

"Yep, that sounds about right." Elidra said.

"But isn't he evil?" Costs asked.

"That's the long version, which I'm not going to tell you because I am falling asleep. What I did took a lot out of me and I need rest." She said and heaved herself up off the couch. "So gentlemen, if you excuse me, I'm going to bed."

"We should probably go too." JD said and tapped Costa's leg. Costa got up and they went to the door. "Night guys."

"Good night." Criss and Elidra said in unison and the two men left, closing the door behind them.

"Hey, El?" Criss asked and she looked at him.

"Yeah, Criss?"

"Why do you keep saying 'no'? I mean, I know my feelings aren't one sided. Why do you keep refusing me?"

"Because I have that right."

"You know what I mean, Elly."

"Yeah, Criss, I do."

"So…"

"I can't form attachments." She said and then smiled. "More than I already have. If I gave in to you, it'll go beyond deep friendship and it'll make it that much harder to leave. I will miss you more than I already will and I'd rather not feel that pain." She said and he walked to meet her where she stood in the doorway between their two rooms. "Criss…" she started but he silenced her by putting his finger to her lips.

"No words." He said and cupped her jaw in his hands. Stooping down slightly at the shoulders, he kissed her bottom lip lightly and she relaxed against him. Criss pulled back and she looked up at him. "Goodnight, Elidra." He whispered against her lips and kissed her gently again before releasing her and going to his bedroom, the door closing behind him.

"Goodnight, Criss." She whispered and turned out the lights before going into her room, the door closing.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Criss spent most of the next day on his computer, and that's where JD found him.

"Hey, Criss, can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked.

"I'm kind of busy right now, JD. Can it wait?" Criss asked, jotting something down on the pad of paper stationed next to the laptop.

"It's important."

"Unless it has something to do with the show, mom, or our friend that is _literally _Holier than Thou, it can wait."

"Actually it does have something to do with Elly."

"Shoot. I'm all ears." He said.

"I want you to stop whatever you're doing with her." JD said and Criss faltered, but recovered quickly.

"Don't know what you mean." He said.

"You know damn well what I mean. I saw you two last night after she brought you back. You two were heavily into each other and I want you to stop."

"Can you give me some reasons why that is any of your business?"

"It's my business because I care about her," JD said. "And I care about JoAnn. How could you do this to her, Criss? How could you betray her like this? She loves you while you're being unfaithful. I don't want to see either of the two women hurt because of your actions and to tell you the truth, I thought better of you."

"It doesn't matter what JoAnn thinks anymore."

"What does that mean?"

"She's made her choice, she doesn't care who I'm with anymore, as long as it's not her." Criss said.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means JoAnn left me!" Criss yelled, jumping up from his seat to face his brother. "She left me, JD! She told me that it was over and she packed her bags and left! Is that a little clearer for you?!"

"Criss, I…" JD said, his expression sorrowful.

"Anything else you want to talk about?" Criss asked.

"Criss…"

"Is there?" he asked again and JD sighed.

"No, that was it."

"Okay, now if you excuse me, I have work that needs to be done." He said and JD left the suite. Criss slammed down the screen on his laptop and ran his fingers through his hair. Getting up from the desk, he crossed the room and knocked on Elidra's door. It opened almost instantly.

"You got a set of lungs, that's for sure." Elidra said and he gave her a wan smile. "What's wrong, Criss?"

"I slept terrible last night. Actually, I really didn't sleep at all. My mind kept replaying memories that aren't mine."

"Your mind is still processing things, give it time, it'll calm down." She said and he sighed.

"I sure hope so. I managed to get to sleep for all of a half an hour, and my dreams were _twisted._" He said. "Enough about me, what about you? You look exhausted."

"I am, to tell the truth. It took a lot out of me to do what I did." She said, running her fingers through her hair. "In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have dragged you into my world like that. I mean, JD asked, you and Costa didn't."

"I wanted you to, even if I didn't know it at the time. I'm glad you did. It helped me understand you better; it helped me understand why you sometimes don't sleep at night. I may have not seen the memories of the Angel Wars, but I felt your fear and your pain and…and it helped me see things through your eyes." He said but she didn't respond. Her eyes went distant and glassed over slightly. "Elly?" he asked but she didn't seem to have heard him. "El?" he took her shoulders in his hands and shook her gently. She snapped out of it and blinked rapidly. "You okay? You kind of left your mind."

"I'm fine, I just need to get some air." She said. "I'll be on the roof."

"Okay, well I have to get some work done here; I'll join you if I can get away."

"Alright."

"Be careful up there, its pretty windy."

"I'll be fine, Criss. Besides, it's not like the fall will kill me." She said smiling and he smiled back. 

"Very true, but be careful anyway." He said and she went up on tiptoe, kissing his cheek.

"I will be." She walked past him and out of the suite, the door closing behind her.

Elidra stood on the uppermost ledge of the roof of the hotel. Her feet were at the very edge, her toes dangling over the lip. People had started to group on the ground 51 stories below her, ambulances and cop cars screeching to a halt in front of the hotel. They thought she was a jumper. She should have known that this was going to happen.

Criss walked out of the hotel and into the bright sunshine. There was a crowd looking up the building and he joined them, looking up also.

"What going on?" he asked a bystander.

"Some woman's going to jump." The man said and he focused on the tiny figure above them, long black hair swirling around the woman's body.

"Elly." He whispered.

"You know who it is?" the guy exclaimed and several people looked at him.

"Yeah, and she's not going to jump. Trust me." He said and took out his cell phone, dialing in the number of the phone that he gave to Elidra.

Elidra dug her ringing phone out of her pocket and flipped it open, holding it to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey, El? What're you doing? Criss asked.

"Just getting some air."

"I noticed."

"Where are you?" she asked.

"Look down." He said and she saw a tiny figure waving his arm at her. Focusing her eyes, her vision enhanced in on him like a hawks' and she smiled. She waved back and saw him smile. "You aren't planning on jumping, are you?"

"I have to go back, Criss."

"Back where?"

"The desert."

"Then we'll go together, just get down off the ledge. I know it won't hurt you, but still, making me kinda nervous seeing you up there."

"I'll be fine."

"I know. Just back away from the ledge." He said.

People on the ground listened intently to his side of the conversation as cops swarmed into the hotel, desperate to get to the roof.

"I have to get back to the desert, where this all started." Elidra said from the roof.

"We'll go as soon as we get back to the room, okay?" Criss said.

"I have to do this my way, Criss. I can't explain it."

"What's going on, Elly?"

"I don't know. I just know that I have to go back to the desert my way."

"There's too many people."

"They won't remember. Only you will."

"Ah, yes, I forgot about that part."

"Meet me there?"

"As soon as you disappear, I'll hop into my viper and come and get you. You'll get there before I will."

"See you then." Elidra said.

"See you then." Criss echoed and hung up the phone.

Elidra dropped her phone behind her on the roof just as police officers rushed onto the roof.

"Miss, Miss please step away from the ledge." One of them said.

"No." Elidra said and stepped off the edge of the roof, her arms out and her head back.

People on the ground cried out as they watched her jump off the ledge. Her wings exploded out of her back and carried her away on the wind, her form vanishing into the blue of the sky.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

After telling JD and Costa what was going on, they insisted that they go with him. The three of them wouldn't all fit in his Viper, so they took the crew SUV out to the desert instead. Criss drove at his usual break-neck speeds once they got out of the city and they watched the desert terrain fly by.

"Do you know where you're going?" Costa asked.

"It was three miles north and a half a mile east of my starting point." He said and stopped the SUV. "Starting point." He said and did a quick U-Turn, driving back the way they came, keeping his eyes on both the road and the odometer. "Three miles." He then left the road and the truck bounced as it flew over rough ground. The smell of sulfur seeped through the seams of the window and filled the car making their eyes water. "We're getting close." He said coughing.

"Close to suffocation." JD complained and Criss shot him a look out of the corner of his eye. His eyes widened and he jerked the wheel, almost sending the truck on two wheels before slamming on the breaks and almost sending JD, who was sitting in the passenger seat, face first into the dashboard. As it was, he and Costa were almost strangled by their seatbelts. Criss bailed out of the SUV as if it were on fire and surveyed the scene before him, not noticing when JD and Costa joined him.

Elidra had her wings out, but relaxed, a sword in one hand and an ax in another, both weapons dripping with thick, black blood. A circle of demons surrounded her and he watched as she beheaded and eviscerated them calmly. One took a swing at her with its sword but she blocked the blow with the shaft of the ax, swinging her sword around. The gleaming metal sliced through the demon's body like a hot knife through butter. The demon froze, but then toppled over, its top half going right while its legs went left. The smell of acidic blood and gore filled the air; filling his nose and making him taste it on the back of his tongue every time he swallowed. She buried the blade of the ax into the chest of one demon and beheaded another with her sword, its body disintegrating as soon as it hit the ground just like the rest.

Her ferocity and mercilessness shocked him. This was a side of Elidra that he's never seen. Her movements were fluid, her face devoid of any emotion, and blood spray decorated her pale skin. Criss knew from their Blending that she killed the evil, but he's never actually witnessed it, all he had were blurred memories of those times. This came naturally to her as breathing did to him. It was all the other actions and emotions that she had had to learn. She was God's assassin and now he knew just what that meant. Movement caught his eye and that's when he noticed the two battered women huddled behind her, holding onto each other tightly as they watched her kill the demons.

Elidra jerked her ax out of the demons chest, its blood leaving the spray across her chest and its body disintegrated into a fine ash, the slight wind making it swirl. Her chest heaving, she passed the weapons over her sides and they vanished, leaving her hands empty. She then turned to the women and fell to her knees before them, her wings sinking into her back. They crawled towards her, tears streaking the dirt on their faces. They fell upon her in embraces and loud sobs and she held them to her as they cried.

Looking over her shoulder at the sound of his boots crunching the ground underneath them, she met his eyes and gave him a weak smile.

"Come on, sweethearts, we have to get up." She said to the two women, and all three of them stood carefully.

"I knew you'd come for us, Commander." One of them sobbed into her shoulder.

"Of course I would, Mahret, you're one of my girls, and I always look out for my girls. I would have gone to the pits of Hell to get you back if I could have." She said.

"We're the only ones left, the rest are dead." The other sobbed.

"You were strong, Allia, you two were strong and you survived."

"Just barely." Mahret said and then noticed Criss standing there. "Commander, there's a human watching us."

"It's alright, Mahret, he's a friend and I trust him with my life." Elidra said and pulled away from them, cupping their cheeks in her hands and kissing their foreheads in turn. She turned to Criss and the two women still huddled closely to her as if she were their security blanket. "Mahret, Allia, this is Criss Angel."

"Hi." He said, waving rather sedately.

"He doesn't look like much." Mahret said, her tears long dried and Elidra laughed.

"Trust me, he's…unique." Elidra said smiling and he smiled back tenderly.

"He has kind eyes." Allia said meekly, her cheek resting on Elidra's shoulder.

"He is very kind." Elidra said and took their hands in her own, lacing her fingers with theirs. "Come, let's go get you two cleaned up and get you some food."

"Where are we going?" Allia asked.

"To where I'm living now."

"Why don't we go Home?"

"I don't have that ability right now."

"I don't understand." Mahret said.

"I Fell." Elidra said and both women gasped.

"Why?" Allia asked. "What happened?"

"I'd rather not talk about it." Elidra said in a very final tone and the two women fell silent. "JD, Costa," she said looking past Criss to his brothers who were still standing by the SUV. "Could you please escort Mahret and Allia into the truck and keep them company? I'll explain later." she asked and the two men nodded, moving forward. "Its okay." She said to the two women who looked at them apprehensively. "They're friends and will do you no harm." The women nodded and hesitantly moved away from her, going to JD and Costa. Elidra watched as they got into the SUV before turning her attention on Criss.

"What's going on, El?" he asked and she gave him tired eyes.

"I'll explain everything when I get back to the hotel. For now, I want you to take Mahret and Allia back to the hotel and show them to my room and tell them that I'll be there shortly. Okay?"

"Elly…"

"Please, Criss. No questions." She said and he sighed.

"We're going to have a talk when you get back."

"Looking forward to it. Now go." She said moving her head at the SUV. Criss turned and started walking back to the truck when he stopped and turned.

"What about you?" he called out to her.

"Me? I have date with the Devil."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Elidra watched the truck drive away and kept her eyes on it until it disappeared from view, vanishing into the dust.

"Lucifer, I need a word with you." She said plainly and there was a flash of fire and her brother was standing in front of her, his beautiful face carrying a worried expression.

"What's the matter, El?" he asked.

"You want to explain to me what the hell is going on?" she asked, her brow furrowed.

"I honestly don't know what you're talking about Elidra." Lucifer said.

"Never thought you'd lie to me, Lucifer."

"I'm not lying. I really don't know what's going on." He said and she contemplated him for a while before discerning that he was telling the truth.

"Mahret and Allia escaped." She said finally and he sighed, his face worried again.

"Are they okay?"

"Besides being severely traumatized, they're a picture of health. That's not why I called you here though."

"Why, then?"

"After they escaped and I found them, several of your demons ignored the Rules of War and appeared and tried to claim them." She said and his eyes burned, his expression turning to that of fury.

"Excuse me!" he roared.

"I tried to tell them that once a POW escapes, that all claim on them is null and void but they wouldn't listen and tried to take them by force. They obviously had no idea who I was, or if they did, they didn't care."

"What did you do?"

"You see this blood on me?" she asked and he really looked at her.

"Yeah."

"Who's do you think it is?" she asked rhetorically, her eyebrow perked and he sighed. "What's going on, Lucifer? Why do I have demons blatantly ignoring the Rules of War and engaging me in fights?"

"I have reason to suspect that there is a coup being planned." He said.

"Who do you suspect is planning it?"

"Beelzebub." He said.

"Beelzebub, great. I never understood how you two always keep getting confused."

"What do you mean?"

"He's a sadist, and you're just pissed."

"Thank you for that glowing description." Lucifer said and she gave him a short smile before going back to the subject at hand.

"Why hasn't he made his move already?" Elidra asked.

"I think he's waiting for something. Every Demon and Devil down there knows that God has a plan for you, we just don't know what it is."

"No one does but dear old Dad." She said.

"So you tell me, War Strategist, what's his next move?" Lucifer asked. "You know Beelzebub better than most, what is he going to do next?"

"Nothing, for now. He's banking on Father's plan for me, banking on the fact that it'll be something big."

"Like what? A Weapon?"

"Possibly. Then after Father executes his plan, Beelzebub will take it from me, probably kill me for good measure and then enact his coup."

"Then what? Go after the Kingdom again?"

"No, he's not stupid. Think Lucifer, what's the one thing he could do that gives him a one-up on Heaven and weakens our Father?" Elidra asked and Lucifer thought for moment, then his face fell and his eyes widened.

"Son of a--"

"Yup, he's going to take on Earth. He's going to wage war against the humans."

"They're light years away from being prepared for something like that, they'll be slaughtered."

"And then Beelzebub will rule both Hell and Earth, it will make him strong enough to take on the Kingdom itself and he will win." Elidra said.

"I should kill him right now."

"Not yet, he's in your Inner Circle, you kill him now and it'll raise too many questions, but if you kill him while he's attempting to take away this possible weapon, then you can cite him for treason and kill him. No one will ask questions then." Elidra said.

"Okay, well us talking has probably raised some brows Above and Below so I'm going to get going." Lucifer said and she nodded.

"Thanks for giving me the heads up."

"No, thank you. My suspicions would have been only that if you hadn't told me about the Demons. I'll keep you informed on what's going on down there."

"And I'll let you know if I hear anything from my end."

"Okay, despite the circumstances, it was nice to see you again Elly." Lucifer said, giving her a gentle smile and she smiled back.

"It was nice to see you too." She said and they hugged. "I love you, Lucifer."

"I love you too, baby sister." He said and they pulled away. Lucifer vanished in a flash of fire leaving Elidra alone in the desert. Looking up at the sky, her wings emerged from her back and she took flight. Soaring through the air gracefully, heading back to the hotel.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Elidra landed once more on the balcony outside of Criss' room but this time the door was unlocked so she let herself in. She heard movement and the room door opened a moment later, framing Criss with an aura of lamp light. She had taken her time flying back so it was now dark outside.

"How are they?" she asked.

"Asleep." Criss said, not need to be told who she was talking about. "Costa kept an eye on them until they fell asleep in your bed, but he's still watching over them. I don't think any demons will give him any trouble, not after the message you sent by dismembering some of them." He said and she gave him a look, walking past him. He caught her arm in his hand and she swung around to look at him.

"I did what I had to do to protect them, and yes, I may have gone a little over board, but in battle, one can not afford not to." Elidra said.

"That wasn't a battle, Elly, that was a massacre."

"Would you prefer it if they took my girls back down to Hell so they continue to…" she paused, "Brutalize them for all of eternity?" she said and he looked away. "My only wish is that I could have made those demons suffer more before they died. _No one_ hurts _my girls_ like that and keeps breathing." She pulled her arm out of his grasp and walked through the suite to the connecting door to her room. The door was ajar and she pushed it open, her eyes falling on the two women curled up together on the bed, both of them fast asleep. Costa was sitting in a chair in the corner, watching over the two women. He looked up as she approached and got up. "Thanks for watching over them." She said, keeping to voice low so as not to wake them.

"No problem at all, it seemed like they needed watching over." Costa whispered and she gave him a weak smile. He left the room, closing the door as quietly as he could behind him. Sitting in the newly vacated seat, she watched as her two girls slept. A wide yawn split her face and her eye lids drooped, it had been a tiring day.

"Commander?" Elidra jerked awake and saw Mahret and Allia sitting up in bed, looking at her. Sunlight filtered in through the drapes and she yawned, standing and rubbing the kink out of her neck. Stretching, she winced as a muscle in her back refused to stretch and she grimaced, rubbing at it.

"Being human hurts." She said, attempting light heartedness. They gave her a weak smile and she sat on the foot of the bed facing them, tucking her feet under herself. "How'd you sleep?"

"Okay, I guess." Allia said while Mahret just shrugged.

"I never understood how beneficial the human custom of 'sleeping' was until I experienced it." Mahret said and Elidra smiled gently at her.

"It helps recharge the body." She said and there was silence. "Michael or Gabriel should be coming soon to pick you up, I'm sure they're aware that you two escaped. I need to talk to them anyway."

"About what?" Allia asked.

"Oh, just something concerning my wayward brother." She said and left it at that. "Come on; let's go get you two cleaned up." Elidra said, getting up from the bed.

"How?" Allia asked, watching her.

"Showers are a wonderful invention, no more bathing in the local stream." She said smiling and held out her hands. "Come." They put their hands in hers and got off the bed, the three of them going into the bathroom.

"Picking up strays your new hobby, Criss?" Dexter asked and Criss gave him a look.

"Don't even go there Dexter." He said.

"I'm just saying. First Elly, now those two."

"Mahret and Allia." Costa said and Dexter looked at him.

"What?"

"It's their names, Mahret and Allia."

"Right, them." Dexter said and looked back at Criss. "So how long are they staying with us? Indefinitely?"

"Actually," they all looked at Elidra standing in her doorway. "Someone should be along shortly to pick them up and take them home."

"Who are they?" Dexter asked.

"Very dear friends of mine, they had been…taken by some very bad people and recently escaped from them. They are heavily traumatized, both emotionally and physically, so be careful about what you say or do around them."

"Commander?" Elidra turned and looked at Allia.

"Its okay, no one here will hurt you." Elidra stepped aside so the two women could leave the room. Their skin was pink from heat and their hair hung around them in damp ropes. Allia looked very innocent and small in Elidra's clothes, her frame very slight. Her blue eyes shone softly and her blonde hair was already starting to curl as it dried. Mahret, on the other hand, was almost the exact opposite. She and Elidra were about the same size, but Mahret was slightly taller. Startling green-yellow eyes took them in and her surroundings and almost blood red hair was brushed away from her face to flow down her back.

The suite door bell rang and Criss moved to stand, but Elidra held up her hand.

"I got it, I have a pretty good idea who it is anyway." She said smiling and went to the door, opening it and going to the other door. They heard her squeak of laughter and a masculine laugh flowed into the room.

"Elly?" Criss asked.

"I'm fine!" she called back, laughter and happiness in her voice. There was a small squeak of surprise and a man walked into the suite with Elly in his arms. Her head was thrown back with laughter and a large smile was on the man's face, his pale violet eyes sparkling. "Okay, Gabriel! You can let me down now!" she said and he pouted, setting her on her feet. He was small, no more than five foot even, but solidly built, his white t-shirt stretching over his chest and across his shoulders. Mahret and Allia made high pitched noises of happiness and just about tackled him making him laugh again. He wrapped an arm around each of their waists and hugged them tightly before they pulled away. He reached up and tucked hair behind their ears, but when his hands came away, he held a deep red rose for each of them. They smiled and took the flowers from him, smelling the blooms. "My room, now." Elidra said and Mahret went behind Gabriel and pushed him in the direction of Elidra's door.

"Nice digs." He said once they were inside and the door closed behind them.

"If you're confused," Costa said. "Raise your hand." Most of them raised their hands, including him, Criss, and JD.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

In the room, Gabriel leapt onto the bed, turning in mid air so he landed on his back, sending the sheets and blankets billowing around him. He blew his platinum blonde hair out of his face with a puff of air and wiggled around on the mattress.

"Comfy." He said.

"Gabe." Elidra said and he sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, time to get serious." He said and sat up. "Well, the big guy Upstairs sent me to take Mahret and Allia back," he paused at the look on Elidra's face. "And something tells me that something else is up." He said slowly.

"Uh…yeah, you could say that." She said. "Mahret, Allia, could you two please leave the room? I need to speak Gabriel alone."

"Commander, if it involves Angels and all of Angel-Kind, we deserve to hear it." Mahret said and Elidra was quiet for a while before she sighed and nodded.

"Fine." She said and told them what she and Lucifer had talked about. When she was done, all humor had drained from Gabriel's face and his eyes were saddened.

"I'll take this information back up with me and tell Michael, he's the only one who has ever gained audience with Father." He said and paused. "Besides you, that is." To this, she had no reply but to nod gravely.

"Take them Home, Gabriel, make sure they stay safe." She said and he got up from the bed with a sigh. The two women went to his side and he encircled their waists with his arms.

"See you soon, Elly." He said.

"Thank you, Commander." Mahret said and Elidra gave them a sad smile.

"Take care." She said. There was a blinding flash of light and the three were gone from her room, once again leaving her alone.

Instead of going back out into Criss' suite, she stayed in her room for the rest of the day, curling up on her side on the bed. She had only been with her girls for not even a full day, but already she missed them. She missed actually having someone to talk to about what she was feeling, what she was going through and them actually being able to understand. Criss, Costa, and JD may have seen through her eyes during certain points in her very, very long life, but that didn't mean they understood. They knew, but they didn't understand, and they never would no matter what she told herself. She was well and truly alone. The thought gripped her heart and brought tears to her eyes. Being immortal sucked.

At some point she must have drifted off because she woke hearing her room door open and then close as quietly as possible. There was weight on the bed as someone crawled onto it next to her and she opened her eyes, meeting the dark chocolate orbs of Criss' irises. He smiled at her through the gloom as he saw her eyes open and she couldn't help but smile back.

"What's up?" she asked tiredly.

"Not a thing. I was just checking up on you, you didn't come back out and I got worried." He said his voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm fine, just tired."

"You sure?" he asked, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"Yeah, I'm sure." She said; closing her eyes again as her body relaxed at the weight and warmth of Criss' palm.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" he asked and she opened her eyes again, looking at him. "You're not alone." He didn't understand why she started crying, her hands coming up to cover face, her body racked with quiet sobs. The only thing he could do was put his arms around her the best he could and hold her to him as she cried while his mind was wrought with confusion.

After a while her tears stopped and he looked at her, seeing her asleep once more. He missed sleeping in the same bed with her; he missed the warmth of her skin and the smell of her hair. Kissing her forehead gently, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to fall asleep, feeling her warm breath fan across his skin.

The sound of someone knocking on her door woke both of them the next morning. Criss and Elidra untangled from each other and Elidra sat up.

"Who is it?" Elidra called out, rubbing her eyes.

"It's JD." He said through the door. "You wouldn't happen to know where Criss is, do you?"

"What's up JD?" Criss called out and there was a pause.

"I need to go over a few things with you." He said and Criss yawned, getting up from the bed and running his fingers through his ruffled hair.

"Okay, give me a minute will you?" He asked.

"Okay." JD said. Criss looked down at Elidra and smiled. Her hair was sleep tousled and her cheeks were still flushed slightly.

"What?" she asked.

"You look beautiful." He said.

"And you're still half asleep, your judgment is off."

"My judgment is not off." He said leaning down and kissing her cheek. He left the room with one last smile to her and she fell back onto the bed, a smile on her face.

Criss and crew were reclining by the pool later that afternoon. They had gotten a bathing suit for Elidra, the men of the crew having the decency to blush when they saw her in the black two-piece that she had chosen, Criss of course saying he was going to pay for it. He had been the only one not to blush.

"I've seen you naked twice, so seeing you in a bikini is nothing shocking." He said and she furrowed her brow at him, crossing her arms under her breasts which made them rise and press together slightly, her bare foot tapping on the carpet outside the fitting room.

"Yes, but the first time I was half buried and in a lot of pain, and the second time I was covered in my own blood and looked as if I was mauled by a tiger." She said and there was a pause.

"Very true." He said at last and looked her over again, a slight flush coming to his cheeks this time. She flashed an accomplished smile and ducked back into the fitting room, getting changed back into her clothes.

Elidra was now futilely trying to get a tan, but it seemed that she was destined to have snow white skin. She had borrowed a hair tie from Jennifer, Criss' personal assistant, and put up her hair into a pony tail high up on the back of her head so she could rest her head on the towel that she put at the head of the chair. She caught the leery looks and grins of guys that walked past every once in a while through her eyelashes and sighed, relaxing more into the chair, her eyes closing the rest of the way.

"Hiya." She heard and opened her eyes enough so she could see out of the corners through her eyelashes. An unknown guy was sitting facing her in the chair next to her.

"Hi." She said and closed her eyes again.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Pretty good, yourself?"

"Eh, okay I guess. You here alone?"

"Nope."

"Friends?"

"Yep."

"I'm Elliot, by the way."

"Okay."

"Well aren't you…"

"Excuse me." A gruff male voice said and they both looked. A small smile perked Elidra's lips and Elliot's eyes widened taking in the large man standing there in white swim shorts that hung low on slender hips. Arms as thick as a woman's thigh were crossed over a heavily muscular chest and the look on his face was part angry and part annoyed.

"Hi, Michael." She said, her smile growing.

"Hi, El." He said smiling at her, his expression breaking and showing affection for a second. His green eyes flicked to Elliot who was still sitting there, his face hardening again. "Beat it." He said and Elliot fled.

"You didn't have to do that." Elidra said, closing her eyes again as he laid out on the newly vacated chair.

"What can I say? I'm protective of my baby sister." He said and laced his fingers behind his head.

"I don't see you scaring off Criss whenever you can." She said looking at him and he shrugged.

"Criss is a good guy, that guy wasn't. You should have seen the thoughts in his head, he thought he could get you between the sheets with a few smooth words." Michael said and snorted. "Humans."

"What are you doing here?" she asked finally.

"Checking up on you, of course. Mahret and Allia said you seemed sad." He said and looked at her with green eyes that glittered in the sun.

"I'm fine."

"Thou shalt not lie."

"Don't quote Commandments at me, Michael." she said and he inhaled greatly, his chest expanding. He let the breath out in a mighty sigh and blinked at her. "Don't look at me like that." She said but he just kept looking at her intently. She scowled at him and closed her eyes, tilting her head back so all he could see was her profile.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Michael continued to look at her intently when a voice split the air between them.

"Hey, El!" Elidra opened her eyes and looked at Criss through the bright sunlight. "You okay?" he asked and she sighed to herself.

"Yep, I'm fine." She said.

"You sure?"

"Positive." She said and closed her eyes again.

"Elidra." Michael said gently but she ignored him. Her eyes suddenly snapped open and she shot into a sitting up position, looking around. "What is it?" Michael asked, ready to go on the defensive.

"Oh God, not here, not now. Please don't tell me he's here." She whispered to seemingly no one in particular.

"Who?" Her brother asked. His eyes went past her and his jaw tightened, a vein throbbing at his temple. She looked where he was and her fears were confirmed. Sitting at a table with his legs crossed, and shaded by an umbrella, Lucifer sipped at a colorful drink, watching them with amusement. Michael jumped to his feet but Elidra was already running towards her other brother. He got up to greet her and pulled her into a hug, her face buried in his chest. She pulled away and looked up at him.

"You can not be here! Michael might not be able to kill you, but that doesn't mean he won't certainly try!" she said in a fierce whisper but he just smiled at her, tucking an escaped lock of hair behind her ear, looking down at her with love in his blue eyes. She felt as the other twin came up behind her and Michael grabbed her hand, pulling her away from Lucifer and back into the sun.

"What the Hell are you doing here?" Michael managed to grind out through clenched teeth.

"I'm surprised you can say that word and not burst into flames, brother." Lucifer said.

"I'm not your brother."

"You were once. Anyway, I'm here to see Elly. She is my sister too, after all."

"You stay away from her, Lucifer." Michael said. "She'll never go with you, not willingly."

"Oh, I know." Lucifer said. "I've no intention of trying to get her on my side anymore."

"Why not?" Michael asked, sounding generally surprised.

"Let's just say…I've been shown the light." Lucifer said while looked at Elidra and they shared a small smile.

Criss, JD, and Costa sat in the shade, watching as the rest of the crew played in the pool.

"Whoa." Costa said and the other two looked at him.

"What is it?" JD asked.

"Looks like Elly might have gotten herself into something." He said and they followed his eyes with their own, seeing their Fallen Angel standing with a man with very long blonde hair and talking to someone in the shade. The man she stood with had his arm around her shoulders protectively and his whole body screamed anger and tension.

"I'm going to go see what's going on." Criss said, getting up from his chair.

"Be careful. That one guy looks like he's close to blows with the other." JD said.

"I will be." Criss said and made his way over.

Elidra felt Criss coming a moment before he arrived, gently pulling her out of Michael's grasp and into his arms. Michael gave him a once over and gave them a small, mysterious smile.

"Criss Angel." The other man said and he looked at him, taking in his immaculate suit and dress shoes that were very out of place among the bathing suits and towels of the people at the pool. "It's good to finally meet the…man who has captured my baby sister's affections." He said and held out his hand. Criss looked at it a brief moment before accepting the greeting. He knew from Elidra's memories that this was her brother Lucifer and the other one was Michael the Archangel. They shook hands and released each other hands, Lucifer keeping eye contact with him. Criss refused to back down, even in the face of the Devil, and met him eye for eye. Lucifer smiled suddenly and looked at his sister. "I like him. He's got strength of mind and spirit." Elidra's arm went around Criss' waist and she leaned against him. "Now, back to the topic at hand."

"The _topic_, Lucifer, is that you have no cause to be here, so leave, now." Michael said and Lucifer looked at him in amusement.

"Only if Elly wants me to leave, she's of this realm now, so she has superiority here. What she says goes; you and I both know that." He said and looked at Elidra. "So, Elly, what is it? Do you want me to leave?"

"No." Elidra said and Michael looked at her in surprise. "What I want, since _you're _asking _me_, is for you two to get along and not fight all the fricken time. I know of only one way for you two to actually get along, to make you two realize just what you are to each other."

"Elly…" Michael started.

"I think it's a great idea." Lucifer said and unbuttoned his suit jacket, taking it off and laying it on the back of the chair behind him. The black dress shirt underneath was stark against his pale skin and he loosened the deep red tie.

"What's going on?" Criss asked in a whisper, leaning down and closer to Elidra.

"What's going on, Mr. Angel is that Michael, Elidra, and I are going to spar." Lucifer said.

"Just like old times." Elidra said, smiling at her brother.

"Elidra…" Michael said and she looked at him.

"Michael, when's the last time the three of us sparred?" Elidra asked but her brother was quiet. "A very, _very_ long time ago, thousands of years it seems." She said with a wink.

"Come on, Michael. What're you afraid of?" Lucifer asked good-naturedly, "Afraid I'll beat you?" Michael snorted and a small smile cracked his face.

"Not likely." He said and the illusionist present saw some of the previous happiness that he had seen in Elidra's memories. "I'm in." he said and the two Fallen Angels smiled. "How do you want to do this, El?" he asked her.

"Posts?" she suggested and her brothers smiled.

"Just like old times." Michael said and Elidra detached herself from Criss, kissing his cheek before she did. Lucifer's eyes literally flashed as he saw this but Michael just smiled mysteriously again.

"Let me get changed into something else so there's no chance of me popping out mid-spar." She said referring to the bikini she was wearing. "No one needs to see that." She said and Criss grinned at her. "Not one word, magic-boy." She mock-threatened and the men laughed.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Elidra emerged from the bathroom of the pool side café in clothes that Criss had never seen before, her bathing suit slung over her arm. A tight black, sleeveless shirt clung to her upper body and black yoga pants hung low, but securely, on her hips. Her hair was braided down her back in a French braid and her eyes sparkled. Lucifer had stripped down to his black tank top undershirt, kicking off his shoes and peeling off his socks. Michael came out from the men's bathroom dressed in pretty much the same thing Elidra was, only in white, and canvas pants instead of yoga pants, his hair also braided down his back. Criss was taken back at how identical Michael and Lucifer were; he couldn't really see it while Michael had his hair down; obscuring his features.

"So how're you guys going to do this?" Criss whispered to Elidra as they were walking out of the café.

"There will be a series of wooden posts," Elidra began to explain. "The Chinese used this method to train their Ninja's, how do you think they got the idea in the first place?" she said and winked. "Anyway, like I said, there'll be a series of wooden posts spaced far apart. Michael, Lucifer, and I will be using staffs as defensive and offensive weapons, needing to balance on the posts to stay in the fight."

"I know what you meant, I mean, how're you going to spar? If you noticed, there aren't exactly lots of wooden posts around for you guys to jump on." Criss said and she gave him a mysterious smirk. Going to the edge of the pool, she surveyed the people in the water. A ripple went through the air and shook the water, emanating from her body. The people stopped and got out of the pool like they had been ordered.

"Human thought is so easy to manipulate." She said as she backed away from the pools edge. Criss scowled at her and she kissed his cheek again, making him smile.

"Elly, have you ever…"

"Manipulated you?"

"Yeah."

"Yup."

"When?" he asked, shocked.

"Remember that time you "passed out"?" she asked and he nodded. "You didn't pass out. You were possessed by a demon."

"A demon."

"Yup, and I killed it. The shock of being inhabited by something so incredibly evil was so great that you fell unconscious. Your mind shielded you from the experience." He looked so shocked and lost that she went up to him and cupped his face in her hands, looking up at him. "Don't dwell on it." On pure impulse, she raised herself up slightly on her toes while pulling him down, her lips meeting his in the middle. His eyes closed and his hands went to her waist, savoring in the taste of her mouth. There was the familiar soaring feeling in his chest and he smiled against her lips, his hands tightening around her waist. She pulled away slightly and smiled at him, her hands sliding down to his neck. "You?"

"Me." He said and she kissed him again. Their feet met ground and she broke away, her fingers lingering on his skin for a moment before her hands dropped to her sides. His hands stayed at her waist as he looked down at her with adoration and affection, his smile gentle and loving. His arms slid around her waist and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Okay," they looked over to see Lucifer and Michael standing there. "If you two are done doing kissy face," Lucifer said. "I think we can start."

"So damn weird." Michael said sighing. "Never thought I'd see my baby sister sucking face with a human."

"Sucking face?" Elidra asked laughing.

"What's wrong with humans?" Criss asked, his brow furrowed.

"Nothing." Michael said.

"Everything." Lucifer said. "You're too easily corrupted. You lie, you cheat, you steal, you kill, and you do other worse things. Just because I've accepted your existence, it doesn't mean that I have to like it. If I had my way, you all would be wiped out so the angels could rule this world again."

"You're a very "up" person." Michael said, scowling at his twin.

"Bite me." Lucifer said sullenly and Elidra frowned at the both of them.

"Now children," she said and they scowled at her. "If we are to be getting along, we must learn not to fight." Criss was the only one to chuckle, but it died in his throat at the glares he was getting from Michael and Lucifer, making him swallow heavily. Elidra started rubbing his back gently and warmth spread through his body, calming him. Stooping down slightly, he buried his face in her neck on the opposite side that was facing her brothers so they couldn't see him. "Be nice, guys. Seriously, or I will go a little overboard when we spar."

"Which will be when, exactly?" Lucifer asked. "You've been playing kissy-face since we got changed. If this isn't going to happen, then I'm going to leave."

"Lucifer's right." Michael said, surprising them both. "You've been very affectionate with Criss for the last few minutes, so something is telling me you're stalling."

"I'm not stalling." Elidra said and Criss pressed his lips to her ear.

"I've captured your attention long enough, I'll let you do your thing now." He whispered and laid a gentle kiss on the side of her neck, pulling away from her slowly and straightening his shoulders. She put some distance between them and approached her brothers, putting her back to Criss.

"Better?" she asked but they just scowled at her. A shudder ran through her body and on instinct she looked back to Criss, but he was gone. "Criss?" she asked, looking around but didn't see him. "JD!" she called out towards him and he looked at her. "You see Criss anywhere?" he looked around.

"No, I don't." he said, walking towards her. "What's going on, Elly?"

"I don't know." She said and turned back to her brothers. "Lucifer, you go down. Michael, you go up. I want to know what's going on, something's not right with this. Report back to Criss' room in an hour. Understood?"

"Yes." They said in unison and vanished, each going to their respective locations.

"JD." She said, turning to him. "You call Criss' cell phone. If I think what happened, happened, it's going to be a long shot that he's going to pick up, but try anyway."

"What do you think happened?" JD asked.

"I don't even want to voice it. Just do as I told you." JD didn't say anything, just got out his cell phone and pressed a speed dial number. He pulled it away from his ear sharply as it emitted a high pitched screeching sound.

An hour later and they were in Criss' suite when Michael appeared in a flash of light.

"Report." Elidra ordered.

"We have no idea what's going on. All we know is that he's disappeared off the face of the Earth." He said and the smell of sulfur filled the air a second before Lucifer appeared on the floor, his body badly beaten. Elidra went to him and knelt on the floor, cradling his body in her arms on her lap. One of his eyes was swollen shut and blood tickled from his mouth. Coughs racked his broken body and she brushed his hair back away from his bruised face. Michael went to the other side and knelt down, supporting his brothers' head with his hand.

"Beelzebub," Lucifer wheezed out. "He has him. I tried to get him back, but there were too many and they don't listen to me anymore."

"You saw him?" Elidra asked.

"Yes, he was unconscious but alive, for now. Beelzebub has to be stopped, Elly, he has to be. He's getting too powerful." Lucifer said and she stroked his forehead.

"Rest, my brother, rest." She said and he fell unconscious. She looked up at Michael, her hand still stroking Lucifer's forehead. "Set any bones that may be broken, and take him into my room to rest. Watch over him, Michael." Michael nodded and took his brothers' body from her arms, picking him up he was a small child and carrying him gently into Elidra's room, the door closing behind him. JD and Costa had watched this in silence and only now did they speak up.

"What are you going to do?" Costa asked and she stood from the floor.

"What do you think I'm going to do? I'm going to get him back." She said. "I have to warn you, I might get his body back, but his mind might be lost."

"What do you mean?" JD asked.

"They've already started torturing him."


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

"Why?" JD asked. "Why take him? Why not you?"

"God has a plan for me that involves Criss, and I think Beelzebub is hoping that somewhere deep within Criss' subconscious that he knows what it is."

"Why would he think that?" Costa asked.

"Because Criss is Touched." Elidra said.

"What?" JD asked.

"He's Touched." She said again but they continued to give her blank stares. "Must have not shown you that memory."

"Obviously." Costa said. "Explain "Touched"."

"The only reason Criss can do what he can do, the only reason he can do slight-of-hand and illusions so good that other magicians have no idea how he does it is because when he was a baby, only days old, I went to the side of his cradle, picked him up and kissed his forehead." She said.

"_What?"_ JD asked.

"I was doing what my Holy Father told me to do. He told me to set in motion things that I couldn't possibly understand yet." Elidra said. "He's not the only one through history that has been Touched. Gandhi, Martin Luther Kind Jr., Abraham Lincoln…"

"Those people were all assassinated." Costa said, interrupting her.

"That's beside the point."

"So you Touched those people?" JD asked.

"No," she said. "Criss is the only person I have ever done that too. When I kissed his forehead, I set everything in motion, and I also may have implanted deep within his mind what God's plan for us was, without even knowing…" her voice trailed off, her eyes going distant.

"Elly?" JD asked.

"He knew." She said absently. "He knew all along, and He never let on."

"Who knew what?" Costa asked.

"God knew that I let Lucifer live. He knew, He knew all along, and He didn't decide to punish me until now because…"

"He was waiting until Criss was fully grown." JD said, finishing the thought.

"Clever." Costa said and JD and Elidra nodded.

"Okay." She said, shaking herself out of it. "Back to the subject at hand, I'm going to go down to Hell and get Criss back."

"What's your plan, specifically?" JD asked.

"I'm going to use that link that Criss and I have between us, which was created when I Touched him, to pinpoint his exact location. I'm going to go there, kill any demon that gets in my way, and rescue Criss."

"Alone?"

"Well, yeah, Michael can't come with me because he's still a full Angel, he'll glow so bright that it'll give us away immediately that we don't belong there. Because I'm a Fallen, my appearance will change slightly when I go down there and I'll blend right in, well except for the Holy Blade I'll be carrying, but they won't see that unless I want them to."

"Change how?"

"Not important." She said, dismissing his question quickly. "That and I don't want to disturb you with the details."

Michael listened to them talking from inside Elidra's bedroom, his hand clenching when she told the others that Criss was Touched. Lucifer fidgeted in his sleep and gave out a low moan of pain making Michael's eyes snap to him. The wounds on his body were very slowly healing; only slightly faster than human slow. It would take days for him to heal every wound on and in his body, days of being vulnerable since every ounce of Power in him was being used to heal him. Michael brushed the hair away from his brother's forehead.

"My beautiful brother, I've missed you so much." He whispered, bending over from his chair position at the side of the bed, he kissed Lucifer's forehead and straightened, once again at attention. Getting up from the chair, he went into Elidra's bathroom and got a washcloth, soaking it in hot water and wringing it out before going back into the bedroom. Sitting down again, he began to gently wipe away the blood from Lucifer's face. When he was done, he went back into the bathroom and tossed the washcloth in the sink, getting the basic First Aid kit and going back to his brother's side. Opening the kit he dug out the disinfectant and began to clean Lucifer's wounds. Any other time, they would have healed too fast to worry about infection, but now was different.

Lucifer made several pained sounds but stayed unconscious as Michael cleaned his wounds, bandaging what he could. The raw head wound was going to be a challenge. In was about two inches long and it looked as if the skin had been torn away rather than cut open. Lucifer cried out in his sleep as Michael dabbed at it with a disinfectant soaked square of gauze, the sound deadened by the wards Michael had put on the doors and walls so Elidra wouldn't worry. The hydrogen peroxide bubbled and fizzed as it cleaned the wound and when Michael wiped it away along with blood that had seeped out, the wound itself was white and molted looking. Michael didn't even know he was crying until a tear fell onto Lucifer's cheek. Sniffling slightly, he wiped the moisture from his cheeks and continued what he was doing.

Putting antibiotic cream on a gauze pad, he laid it gently over the wound and taped it down with medical tape, making sure it was secure. Lifting Lucifer's tank-top up slightly, Michael moved his hands long his ribs, gently pressing to see if any were broken. There were a few line fractures, but no real breaks. Satisfied that his brother wouldn't slip into a coma while his body repaired a punctured lung, he put the shirt back where it belonged and put the kit back together again, taking it back into the bathroom.

"How is he?" He looked through the bathroom doorway and saw Elidra standing at the end of the bed.

"Still unconscious, I managed to clean him up as well as I could, but they worked him over pretty good." Michael said looking down at the sink, still cleaning up.

"Yeah, they did at that." Elidra said and there was silence.

"You getting ready to get Criss back?"

"Yeah."

"Be careful, okay?"

"I will be." Elidra said then sighed. "I always am." She said and Michael smiled.

"Not…" he looked up and saw her gone. "Always."


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Heat washed over her skin and the smell of sulfur filled her nose as she descended. Her skin tingled and burned as it changed, odd tugging sensations started at her fingertips as her nails lengthened into razor sharp claws. Ram horns grew from the sides of her temples to sweep back and curl around her ears, the descending arc brushing against her shoulders. She landed in a crouch on the dead rock that made up the ground, the Demons milling around her didn't give her a second glance.

A glimpse of Criss' surroundings seen through his eyes flashed across her minds eyes and she knew where he was. Elidra broke into a run, heading in the direction she knew she had to go, catching glimpses of her reflection in shards of polished obsidian and pools of dark water. A spearhead of pain lanced through her head and she stopped, faltering. Pressing her fingers to her temple, she shook her head as the pain dissipated. That was odd.

Criss spit blood out of his mouth only to be hit again by the bulky monster in front of him. Blood filled his mouth again and again he spit it out onto the putrid ground. They had stripped him down so he was naked from the waist up, the air burning the skin of his chest and arms. He shook his hair out of his face, his hands tied in front of him. The Demon did a roundhouse kick to his face and he turned his head to the side. The force of the blow diminished significantly, but it still knocked him onto his back.

"Just tell me what I need to know, human, and this will all end." The well-dressed man sitting in the corner, said. His short black hair was tied at the base of his neck and the black-on-black suit he was wearing was immaculate, his beard trimmed neatly.

"I don't know." Criss said defiantly, pulling himself back up onto his knees. Under normal circumstances, he knew that his mind probably would have broken by now, but when he had Blended with Elidra he knew now that he had become stronger. The man nodded to the Demon and it hit him again, cutting open his cheek. _Elidra._ He thought abruptly and his head snapped back as the thought bounced back at him. The man tsked and wagged his finger at him.

"Don't try to communicate with her using thought." He said.

"I honestly didn't know I could." Criss said, spitting more blood mixed with saliva out of his mouth.

"Honestly?" the man asked, his tone almost surprised.

"My hand to God." He said and gained some grim satisfaction when the Demon in front of him screeched in pain at the sound of His name. Criss rolled his shoulders backward almost like he bored, the thick muscles sliding fluidly under his skin. The ripples of kinetic power traveled down the backs of his arms and into his wrists, contorting the bones slightly and making the ropes binding his hands slacken a bit and slide to where the thumbs joined the wrists deep under the skin the sinew. His vast experience as an escape artist would come in handy after all; he just had to do it in such a way that it wouldn't bring attention to what exactly he _was_ doing.

Elidra pulled the stone blade out of the chest of the Demon that had told her the exact place where Criss was being kept and stepped back as the body disintegrated into a fine ash. Seeing things through Criss' eyes was great and all, but that didn't give her a real exact location, especially in a place like this. There was another spearhead of pain and she blinked away tears, her vision swimming for a moment before steadying.

"We can't just sit here and do nothing!" JD exclaimed, pacing back and forth. Satisfied that Lucifer would be fine on his own, Michael had joined the two brothers in the common room of Criss' suite.

"What do you propose we do then, JD?" Michael asked calmly. "We can't go down there and help them. I would stick out because I'm the ArchAngel and you two are humans, and they're fair game down there. Beelzebub will have no use for you two, so he'll just have the both of you killed, and me, well let's just say I won't die for a very long time."

"What about Lucifer? Why can't he help us?" JD asked and a flash of anger entered Michaels' eyes.

"If you haven't noticed, my brother is otherwise incapacitated." He said, his voice shaking slightly.

"JD." Costa said and his brother looked at him. "Sit down and calm down."

"How can you be so calm about this, Costa?! Our little brother is being tortured down in Hell right now!"

"I'm calm because I trust that Elly will get him back. Just maybe you should too." Costa said. "Now sit down." JD glared at him, but sat down in one of the recliners. "What I want to know, Michael," Costa said, looking at him. "Why have they been gone for so long?"

"Time is relative down there. It's the same where I'm from. Time moves quickly down there, to us it's been hours, but for them it's probably only been a half an hour at the most." Michael explained and Costa nodded.

"If time travels differently, then how old are you guys exactly?" Costa asked, attempting to change the subject and making Michael chuckle shortly.

"Very, _very_ old, I don't know the exact number. Elidra, Lucifer, and I watched planets being formed, stars implode to create black holes or explode to create dazzling displays of color and light. We watched this planet form from a lifeless black rock. We danced and swum among the stars, nursing whole galaxies into creation." Michael said, his gaze becoming wistful.

"Who made this one?" JD asked.

"Elly did. I remember her holding her hand out to this cluster of stars and watching them spiral. She was a creator, an artist of the stars and then He made her a destroyer. Did she tell you that her appearance would change when she goes down into Hell?" Michael asked.

"Yes, she didn't tell us how or why though." JD said.

"How she changes is subjective. As for the why, Elly isn't pure; she's killed too many people to be pure. I only killed Demons and Devils. She's killed humans, a countless number of them. By doing exactly what He had created her for, she was damning herself. She'll look like them, the Demons. I only hope Criss sees through it like I think he will." Michael said.

"Yes, she told us of their connection." Costa said quietly.

Criss flexed his shoulders again when the Demon and the man were talking and the ropes slipped from his hands. Rotating his wrists, the bones corrected themselves and he smiled grimly, getting to his feet silently. A jagged knife that looked like it had been carved out of stone had been dropped onto the floor absently. He grimaced as he remembered this blade cutting into his skin when they had moved from beatings to cutting into him. Cuts decorated his chest, stomach and arms, some of them still trickling blood slowly. Rotating his head at the neck, he picked up the blade and stuck it in the back waistband of his pants, glad he had worn clothes instead of swim trunks to the pool, having planned to film some more small illusions for the pool-goers. Picking up the two meat hooks that had been used on him also, he held one in each hand.

Beelzebub was talking with the Demon about Criss' continued defiance when a hook curled around the Demons' neck, the tip skewering its throat. Black blood gurgled out of its mouth and the hook was jerked out, tearing a chunk out of its neck. It collapsed into a swirl of ash and he looked at Criss, the hooks in his hands.

"Very impressive." Beelzebub said, his tone true. He made a motion with his hand and more Demons rushed into the circular stone room, surrounding Criss. "It seems that the Fallen Angel has taught you something after all."


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Criss' back hit the wall with a thud and the Demon rushed him. Reaching up he grabbed the holders for the torches lighting the room and pulled him self up, thrusting both of his bare feet into its chest, making it fall back from the force. Letting himself fall back onto his feet, he took the torches from the holders, the hooks long gone, and bashed a Demon upside the head with one of the torches, stabbing another one in the chest with the lighted end and setting it aflame. Its' screeches of pain rung in his ears before it dissolved into ash. The one he had kicked back was on its feet and tried rushing him again, but he drew the knife that was still in the waistband of his pants and threw it. The knife buried itself into the Demon's forehead and it went down, disintegrating. The man that had been there was gone and the room was empty, save for the smell of sulfur.

Arming him self the best he could with whatever was in the room, Criss ran from the stone chamber. Blood curdling screams met his ears, knocking him back a few steps. He wouldn't dare stop and take in his surroundings. A heavy hand landed on his shoulder and he grabbed it, twisting around. The Demon screeched as its shoulder was dislocated and Criss stabbed the blade he had picked up in the center of its back, pulling it out as the Demon dissolved. Another one rushed him as it saw its comrade die and Criss ducked the swing of its arms, driving his fist into the Demons stomach. The monster doubled over in pain and Criss took its head in his hands. With one great twist, he broke its neck and left it where it lay, leaving it to dissolve. Fatigue was starting to make his muscles burn and the cuts and punctures in his chest and arms were starting to bleed heavily.

There was a roar and he just barely dodged the punch coming from the odd looking Demon. Landing a kick to its stomach that made it double over, he swung his fist up in a powerful uppercut that knocked it onto its back. Criss approached it, rotating his shoulders and kicked it onto its stomach. He stripped the leather vest from it and slipped it on over his chest before placing his foot at the back of its neck and pressing down sharply. The dull crack sounded as its neck broke and the Demon dissolved. Several Demons later, the vest was gone again and sweat covered his chest and arms, stinging the wounds. He swung one of the hooks that he had retrieved from before into the chest of a Demon and he jerked it out, making a spray of black gelatinous blood coat his skin. A drop hit one of the gouges in his chest and he was blinded by pain as it burned like acid in the wound. The wound started to bleed heavily again and the pain faded as his body pushed out the foul blood.

Blood loss was making him lightheaded and the fatigue grew until his arms started to feel like they were filled with lead. He swung the hook at a female shaped Demon but it blocked it, twisting it out of his hand. He could hear his name being called and saw the Demon's lips move. He swung the other hook but it knocked it out of his hand almost easily. He looked closely at the small-framed Demon, seeing the angry black glyphs on every bit of snow white skin that was exposed. Black claws grew from its fingertips and ice blue eyes were fixed on him. He went for the knife but it grabbed his arm, twirling him around so his back was against its chest. Its knee hit the back of his and he fell to his knees. He felt it pull the stone blade out of the back waistband of his pants and waited to feel the edge press against his throat, but it never came. Criss heard his name again and this time he recognized the voice.

"Elly?" he asked and the Demon walked around him, dropping to its knees in front of him. It cupped his face in its hands and made him meet its eyes.

"Criss." It said and he truly looked at it. Looking past the black markings, he reached up and felt a line of cheek that was so familiar to him, the skin soft and smooth under his hand. Tears swam in his eyes and spilled over his lashes, coursing down his cheeks and making the dirt on his face streak, stinging the cut on his cheek.

"Elly?" he asked and she embraced him gently, being mindful of his many wounds. Exhaustion finally hit and he cried heavily into her shoulder, his body drained. Pulling back he looked at her demonic appearance, his fingers tracing the horns sprouting from her head. "How…why…?"

"I'll tell you later." Elidra said softly, pulling him against her. Still holding him, she closed her eyes and made them vanish.

JD, Costa, and Michael jumped to their feet as Criss and a Demon materialized in the center of the room. The Demon had its arms around him, and he had his arms around it. The two pulled from each other as they collapsed onto the carpet in exhaustion, their chests heaving. Michael approached the Demon, his sword naked and gleaming in the overhead lights.

"Wait." Criss said weakly. "Don't."

"I must kill it." Michael said.

"It's Elly." He said and they watched as the glyphs started to fade slowly back into the pale skin, the horns curling back into the Demon's head and the black claws retreating and becoming short, well manicured nails. Dirt and sweat coated Elidra's skin along with any blood that had been transferred from Criss to her.

"He's heavily wounded." Elidra said and the sword vanished from Michael's hand.

"Are you hurt?" Michael asked, but Elidra shook her head.

"I took a few hits, but I'll be fine. Just give me a minute." She said.

"Criss may not have a minute." JD said.

"The bleeding has stopped," Michael said and knelt by him, putting his hand to his forehead. "His temperature is normal," He pressed his fingers to Criss' neck, "Pulse is strong, but faster than normal. Not surprised that it is though. Criss is strong."

"Killed as many as I could." Criss mumbled. "Killed as many of those monsters as I could." He said and Michael smiled.

"Good boy." He said.

"Is Lucifer okay?" Elidra asked as she sat up.

"He was sleeping when I left him."

"You left him alone?" she asked sharply.

"I put Angelic glyphs on all the doors and windows and all the borders of the room should anything from Hell try to get to him while he's out, they'll be killed instantly." Michael said and she nodded.

"Good thinking." She said and got to her feet. Going to Criss, she took the hand that he had reached out to her and helped him to his feet, catching him when his legs failed him. Elidra picked him up like she would a child, one arm around his shoulders and another around the backs of his knees. JD and Costa looked at her, continually surprised at her strength. "What?" she asked and carried Criss into his room, kicking the door closed behind her.

A smile still graced Elidra's lips as she helped Criss into the shower, the smile brought on by a comment he had said while she undressed him about how if she just wanted to get into his pants, all she had to do was ask. She stayed fully clothed as she started the spray, adjusting the water temperature so it wouldn't freeze or scald him. The dirt, sweat, and blood sluiced off his skin, swirling around the drain. His body stayed loose and relaxed in her arms as she gently washed the numerous wounds with a washcloth and body soap, using the generic hotel brand instead of his scented kind. She very gently washed his hair, massaging his scalp gently before washing the suds from his thick locks, making sure to get it all and not get soap in his partially closed eyes.

Criss leaned against her as she got a towel and squeezed his hair between the folds before wrapping and securing it around his waist. Flinging his arm around her shoulders, she helped him out of the stall and pulled a comb through his hair, working at the knots gently. Still supporting most of his weight effortlessly, she helped him to bed.

Criss groaned in relief as his body hit the mattress, his eyes opening a bit more to look at her as she pulled the blankets over him,

"Are you staying?" he asked his voice barely above a whisper.

"I have to get changed into something dry, I'm dripping water all over the place."

"Go ahead, I won't look." He said and she chuckled.

"I'll be right back. You just rest."

"Okay." He said and closed his eyes again, hearing her leave the room.

JD and Costa were still in the living room, but Michael was gone.

"How is he?" JD asked.

"Mentally and physically exhausted, but I think he'll be okay." Elidra said. "How long were we gone?"

"It seemed like an eternity." Costa said. "You were gone about twelve hours."

"Wow." She said, "It only seemed like a couple of hours down there."

"Michael explained how time moves quicker down there than it does up here."

"It does indeed." She said and there was silence. "How about you guys go to bed, get some sleep?" she suggested.

"I don't think I can sleep." JD said.

"You will be, trust me." She said and he nodded.

"What're you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to look after him, make sure he's still mentally strong. He took quite a beating; it will take some time for me to heal him inside and out."

"And you can do that," Costa said. "Heal him?"

"If I focus, yes, I can." She said and he nodded. "Now you guys get to bed."

"Okay." JD said and got up from the recliner he had been sitting in. Costa got up from the couch and they trooped from the room silently. She locked the doors behind them before going into her bedroom. Lucifer was awake and sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at his hands.

"How are you?" she asked.

"I'm fine." He said, looking at her. The swelling in his face had gone down considerably and he could now look at her with both eyes. "I'm hesitating going back down there."

"Don't. That makes them think you're afraid of them." She said.

"I am." He said looking back down at his hands and she went over to him, laying her hand on top of his head, stroking his hair. "You're soaking wet." He said.

"I cleaned Criss up." She said and he nodded.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"He will." She said and he nodded again.

"He's good for you, he makes you happy. That's the only reason I care anything about him at all." He admitted. "If he didn't make you happy, then he'd just be another worthless human." He said. "He cares about you so much, you know."

"I know." She said. "Here's what you do." She said and he looked up at her. "Surround yourself by Demons whom you know are loyal to you and that you know can't be corrupted by Beelzebub. I don't know how many are with him, nor do I know how long he's been planning what he's been planning, but I guarantee you it won't have been for long, probably only since Criss was Touched, which isn't a very long time if you think about it." She said and he nodded. "I'm guessing Our Holy Fathers; plan for me will come to fruition within the next few months while I'm still on Earth. The moment I know what it is, I'll contact you, but don't wait for me to do that before you start preparing. Start the moment you get down there. By taking Criss, Beelzebub has made the first move, it's our turn, but make it subtle. Get a spy within Beelzebub's ranks, there are plenty of Demons who would love to be promoted to Devil status, have one of them do it, but make sure it's trustworthy, you have your own ways of doing that. Also get one of the succubae into his ranks, doesn't matter if their human or not, leaders always tell the most of their plans to the one who shares their bed."

"He'll be suspicious." Lucifer said.

"No, he won't. Especially not when that succubus puts her moves on him, and even I have to admit, he's very handsome."

"For the betrayer of the Son." Lucifer said.

"That's neither here nor there. Old history, Lucifer, ancient to some." She said, her hand falling back to her side. Lucifer stood, wincing slightly and faced her.

"I'll see you soon, little sister."

"And I'll keep you informed." She said and Lucifer pulled her into his arms, kissing the top her head before releasing her and vanishing. Elidra got changed into her pajamas in thoughtful silence and left her room, closing the door behind her.

Turning lights off as she went, she pushed the door to Criss' room open and looked at him as he slept, his face peaceful. Entering the room, she closed the door as quietly as she could behind her and walked to the other side of the bed, lying down under the covers. Curling up against Criss' side, she laid her hand on his chest over his heart and her skin began to glow with a soft luminescence.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Criss groaned as Elidra's fingers dug into the muscles of his back, his face in his pillow. His breathing hitched for a moment but a low moan escaped his lips a moment later.

"How does that feel?" Elidra asked, her voice soft and sweet.

"_Amazing._" He groaned, his teeth capturing his lower lip as her hands continued to manipulate the muscles under his bare skin. His hands clenched his sheets in fists, his knuckles white. Her hands moved to his neck and shoulders and his eyes closed tight. That was the problem with rapid healing; it tended to leave the muscles tight and bunched. The only thing that kept her from becoming lame after the massive lacerations had healed was the stretches she had done after she had gotten out of the shower the day she was released. Swinging her leg over his hips, she climbed off her position sitting on his butt and patted his back.

"Turn over." She said and he did, fixing the boxers he had put on. This time she sat cross-legged next to his hip, instead of taking her previous position with one knee on either side of his hips. Shiny pink scars had replaced the punctures and lacerations that had decorated his body the night before. The muscle under the scars were bunched and knotted, each one needing singular attention before she moved onto the next one. There was one particular scar very low on his abdomen, ranging from one hip to the other, as if the Demon had attempted to eviscerate him, but hadn't cut deep enough for it. Criss would have a thick, cord-like scar for the rest of his life because of it.

Elidra kept her eyes on her hands as they ran over his perfectly flawed skin, feeling every bump and ridge of muscle. Her lips parted as her fingertips met the flat disks of his nipples and she snatched her hands away from him as if his skin had burned her. Turning her back on him, she sat on the edge of his bed with her hands braced on her knees, her chest heaving and her body shaking. Desire coursed through her veins, turning her blood molten hot, making her feel as if her blood was boiling in her veins. Her body wanted him so badly, wanting that ache for him that had been forming since they first kissed to finally be satisfied.

She jumped as his hand touched her back, but she didn't look at him.

"El." Criss whispered. "Look at me."

"I can't." she said, angry at herself for the tremors in her voice.

"Please." He said, his tone pleading.

"I just can't, Criss." She said, "Please understand." Elidra got up from the bed and went to the door. She stopped in the doorway, but didn't look at him, feeling his eyes on her. "I have to get this under control, I'm only here for a few more months, and with everything that's going on, I can't afford to be weak willed. If I can't control my own body, how can I be expected to control whole armies again if the time comes?" She said and paused. "Do pushups and sit-ups to loosen the muscles, me giving you a massage was a bad idea." Elidra left his room, closing the door quickly. JD and Costa were in the common room and looked at her as she crossed the expanse.

"Elly? What's wrong?" Costa asked, picking up on her tension. She dismissed his question with a wave of her hand and fled to her room, locking the door behind her. Looking at each other in question, they got up from their respective locations and went to Criss' room, pushing open the door and finding him on the floor doing his rapid pushups. "What's up with El?"

"Things." Criss said shortly.

"What kind of things?" JD asked.

"Ask her." He said, just as shortly as before.

"I did, and she didn't give me an answer."

"Then I don't know."

"Damnit, Criss, what did you do to her!" JD exclaimed and Criss stopped, pushing up so he was on his knees.

"I didn't do a damn thing!" He said and he was suddenly aware that JD and Costa were staring at the numerous scars on his chest and abdomen. Self-conscious, he got up off the floor and went to his dresser, pulling a shirt out of it and putting it on. "I need you guys to leave now." He said quietly and they respected his request, leaving without a word. Sitting at the foot of his bed, he put his hand up his shirt and felt the thick, smooth puncture scar over his heart. It felt as if someone had placed a jagged edged quarter under his skin and then seared the wound closed. Taking his hand from the under his shirt, he put his head in his hands and ran his fingers through his hair.

Criss appreciated that Elidra had rescued him from that, he appreciated that she had healed him, but he wished that she could take away the memories. When they woke up that morning, he had asked her if she could take away those memories, but she said she couldn't, she didn't have the power, and she couldn't even numb the impact of them.

They had told the camera crew that Criss had caught a bug and needed a few days rest to get better again. The A&E Network execs had understood and said he had as much time as he needed to get well, because apparently half of the executives were sick themselves. Criss planned on spending that time getting as much sleep as he could, since lately he hasn't been able to get much of any.

Just as he had previously predicted, tabloid rumors had started to spread like wildfire about Elidra, most of them saying that she was a part of a publicity stunt organized by Criss and his company, others saying that she was his mistress. He refused to talk to these people and ignored their calls, having his people tell them that he was too busy to respond, which was partly true.

Lacing his fingers behind his head, he fall back onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling.

Elidra paced around her room like a caged animal, casting furious glanced around the room. Her bedroom seemed far too small, the walls pulling inward and expanding outward every time she breathed. Her back burned, her wings moving under her skin, demanding to be set free. Concentrating, she pictured the roof of the Aladdin and then she was there, the nighttime winds whipping her hair around her body. Her eyes closed as the skin in her back split open, her wings coming out smoothly, and the fabric of her shirt flowing aside to allow them.

Climbing to an uppermost point, she stood right up against the ledge, her toes hanging off. Looking down, she observed the specks of people moving about; blindly unaware of what was happening in the world and what was happening right above them. Blind to the war brewing between two sides that some of them might not even believe exist. They were so unprepared that it was actually horrifying. If the war actually spilled out of the Realms and onto the human plane, it would be Armageddon as they knew it. A single tear ran down her cheek and plummeted down the length of the building. Her pupils widened as she followed it and watched as it narrowly missed a tourist, hitting the pavement with a miniscule splash. Her pupils contracted to the size of pinpoints and she observed the particles moving around through the air.

Closing her eyes, her arms extended and she floated off the ledge, her wings lifting her into the night sky.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Elidra woke early the next morning to someone touching her shoulder.

"My child?" she heard and opened her eyes, rubbing sleep from them. Her vision focused and she looked into the concerned face of a priest. "Are you alright?" she didn't answer him but looked around, seeing that she had fallen asleep curled up on the floor of a small church in front of the altar.

"I'm fine, Father." She said and got up, running her fingers through her hair, wincing as her fingers got caught in a knot. She didn't remember entering the church, or even where it was located, she just remembered flying over the desert towards the rising sun and the nothing. The wing joints and the surrounding supporting muscles deep in her back burned and she rotated her shoulders.

"Are you sure?" he asked and she peered at his kind, weathered looking face.

"Yeah, I'm sure." She said and he smiled gently.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" he asked and she smiled in gratitude.

"I would love one."

They were sitting out on the patio coming from the rectory, sipping from earthen ware mugs. The church, it appeared, was located in the desert, carved out of a mountain side.

"Is there someone I can call?" he asked.

"I don't want to face them right now." She said and he nodded, taking a drink from his steaming mug.

"What's wrong, my child?" he asked.

"El."

"What?"

"My name is El." She said and he nodded again.

"What's wrong, El?"

"I am." Elidra said, staring into her cup.

"I don't…understand." He said.

"What's your name, Father?"

"Michaels." He said and she nodded.

"Father Michaels, I think I need to take confession."

"Do you want to go inside?" he asked but she shook her head.

"I want to do this here, if that's okay." Elidra said and he nodded.

"That's fine." He said and she nodded, staying silent for a while before she found her voice again.

"Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It has been…a very long time since my last confession." She said.

"How have you sinned, my child?"

"I have done…horrible things, in the name of Our Lord." She said.

"Does God speak to you, my child?"

"He used to." Elidra said. "He doesn't anymore."

"Why do you think that is?"

"He's punishing me."

"For?"

"I didn't do my job."

"I don't understand."

"The only reason why I was created was to kill evil, no matter where it had inhabited." She said.

"You've killed?"

"Yes."

"And God told you to kill."

"Yes, but I did not kill indiscriminately. You must understand that." She said and the priest got up from his chair. "Father?"

"My child," he began, but her raised hand silenced him.

"Sit down, Father." She said; her tone commanding and he did. She sighed and set her mug down on the glass-topped table, pushing the chair away as she stood. Her eyes closed and she took in several controlled breathes, inhaling through her nose and exhaling from her mouth. Father Michaels' eyes widened as the shadow of her wings expanding outwards eclipsed his body, casting him in darkness.

Criss stood on his balcony, his eyes on the horizon. He willed Elidra's soaring form to appear in the sky, but it remained empty with the exception of a few white clouds.

"Where are you, Elly?" he whispered before going back inside.

Criss' voice came to her on the wind and she looked back in the direction it had come from. The Priests hand clenched around hers and she looked at him, tears glittering in her eyes.

"I have to go." She said and the Priest nodded. "He needs me."

"Then go." He said and they embraced, her wings wrapping around him. "Thank you for giving me this clarity, this knowledge."

"You do good work, Father." She said and pressed a kiss into his forehead. "Keep doing it. We'll need people like you."

"What do you mean? Need me for what?"

"Watch the skies, keep your ear to the ground, and most of all…pray. Pray everyday. Sanctify this church a thousand times over, it'll be sanctuary should the war ever come."

"What war?"

"I hope to my Holy Father that it never comes." She pressed another hasty kiss to his forehead and took off into the sky.

Elidra hit the ground running, her wings sinking into her back. Thankfully, Criss had left the balcony doors open. His room door swung open and framed him. They came into each others arms in a fierce embrace and Criss cradled the back of her head with his hand as she buried her face in his chest.

"I heard your call." She said, taking her face out of his chest. "What's wrong?" she asked, reaching up to brush his hair away from his face.

"Where were you, Elly?" he asked, "Where did you go?"

"I needed to talk to someone who had no connection to you whatsoever, distantly or directly." She said.

"Did you find that person?" he asked and she nodded.

"Now, what's wrong?" she asked.

"I keep having flashbacks." He said and she stroked his cheek with the backs of her fingers. "They are so real, I can feel the scorching heat, smell the sulfur, and the screaming, oh god, the screaming." He said, his arms tightening around her waist as he buried his face in her neck, the two day dark stubble on his jaw scraping against her skin. With a glance at the open door, it slammed closed and locked out the world. The balcony doors did the same and Criss looked at her as the curtains slid together of their own device, casting them into darkness.

"I'm going to try something, something that I haven't done in a very long time, mostly because it sometimes doesn't work." She said and he looked at her quizzically.

"What're you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to examine your scent." She said slowly, as if to make him understand.

"How?"

"I'm going to smell your neck, both sides above the pulse point, where the scent is the strongest and purest."

"How is that going to help?"

"I need to determine whether or not it's a demonic seed in your mind that's making its way past the barriers I put up, of if it's just you."

"And smelling me will help you how?"

"You'll be giving off a very faint smell of sulfur."

"Okay, so how're you…"His words cut off as her fingers laced in his hair, her face going in his neck, his eyes fluttering closed. Her chest expanded as she inhaled deeply, her exhale traveling across his skin and through his body. Changing hands, she did the same to the other side of his neck and his legs buckled; his knees suddenly weak.

"I don't smell anything but you." She whispered against his skin. Her hands joined in his hair and he looked at her before his eyes closed again, his body relaxing. "Criss?" she whispered and his hands went to her hips, holding her against him. She pulled his head back and her lips just barely skimmed along the surface of his neck, catching the stubble. Elidra pulled away from him suddenly and he looked at her, seeing her eyes wide and her chest heaving. "Bad idea, very bad idea!" she exclaimed.

"El?" Criss asked, his eyes opening.

"Every time I go near you or you come near me, I feel my control slipping. The only way I can stay in control is if I don't go near you." She said, "And Criss? You need to stay away from me."


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Her order seemed logical…in theory. They stay away from each other so she can concentrate on much more important things. The only problem was she was now in his head. He could feel her in his mind, know she was coming the moment she made herself known, knew it was her on the other line when one of their phones would ring, knew what she was feeling without even having to be in the same room as her. What really threw him for a spin was that it seemed if she thought loud enough or if he was the subject, he could hear her as clearly as if she had spoken aloud. Her thoughts almost constantly reverberated through his mind, painting images on the insides of his eyelids every time he closed his eyes.

Criss woke from a dead sleep as pain lanced through his abdomen, a cold sweat breaking out on his skin and tears springing to his eyes. He felt his stomach and pulled his hand away expecting to see blood, but his hand was clean. Another spearhead of pain assaulted his nerves, and he curled up on his side, lights dancing before his eyes. His heartbeat was loud in his ears and muscle spasms wracked his body. There was a small reprieve, allowing him to get up out of bed before another wave of agony hit him. He just barely made it into the bathroom as his stomach purged itself of its contents.

Flushing the toilet, he went to the sink and splashed a handful of cold water on his face, looking at his own reflection in the mirror. Dull, sunken eyes looked back at him from within a gaunt, pale face. Another wave of pain doubled him over, his forehead pressed against the cool marble sink. Criss collapsed onto the floor, his body writhing in pain.

After a while it passed, and he was left panting on the floor, the cold tile making him shiver. Getting up from the floor, his body shaking, he crawled back into bed and was asleep within moments. For the next few hours that seemed an eternity, he was locked in his mind, nightmarish images playing themselves out across his eyes.

His body was weak when he woke up the next morning, but he just waved it off and took a multivitamin.

"You're really pale." Toni Lee observed while she was getting ready to do his makeup, and he shrugged it off.

"I didn't sleep very well last night, kept having nightmares." He said, taking a sip of water from the plastic bottle. A shudder wracked his body, making him bend in upon him self and Toni Lee jumped away in surprise.

"Are you okay?" she asked, putting her hand on his back.

"Yeah, I'm fine. That's been happening to me a lot lately."

"You think you should see a doctor?" she asked but he shook his head.

"It's just a stomach thing; it'll pass in a couple days." Criss said but she didn't look convinced. "I'll be fine…really." He said, looking her square in the eye and she nodded, but that was when another shudder seized his body.

"Come on, let's get you lying down. You are not well." She said and he nodded, allowing her to help him up from the chair, leaning against her as she steered him over to the couch. Criss collapsed against it and started to shiver uncontrollably. Toni Lee pressed her hand against his forehead, but pulled it away sharply. "You're burning up." He suddenly cried out as pain gripped his abdomen, a cold sweat soaking his body.

JD, Costa, and about a half dozen other people ran into the room, stopping short of the scene on he couch. Toni Lee had Criss' head in her lap, her hand stroking his hair soothingly as his body seized; his skin ashen.

"He needs to get to a hospital." She said but no one moved. They were pushed out of the way and Elidra ran to the couch, crouching down. She laid her hand on his forehead and his eyes opened.

"E-Elly?" Criss asked his voice rough. Another shudder ran through him and he whimpered, his eyes closing tight.

"Every one needs to leave." She said calmly.

"Screw that!" Toni Lee exclaimed, but she didn't look at her. "He's going to a hospital!"

"Leave, Toni!" Elidra snarled, her head snapping up to look at her, her eyes burning ice blue. Toni's eyes widened and her hand went to her throat.

"How…"

"Leave! Now!" she exclaimed, her voice deepening as her teeth lengthened into razor sharp points. Toni fled as quickly as she could and everyone followed JD and Costa the only ones that remaining in the room.

"What's going on?" JD asked as Elidra stroked Criss' forehead.

"He's sick." She said.

"We can see that." Costa said, drolly. "So why aren't we taking Toni's advice and getting him to a hospital?"

"Because I've seen this before, and your doctors will only make it worse. Trust me." Her tone stayed low and calm.

"What is it?" JD asked.

"It's a demonic parasite, similar to a tapeworm. Only instead of eating the salad he had for lunch, its eating his soul. It will eventually eat itself out of his abdomen and move on when it has nothing left to devour. If Criss survives its exit, which no one has, he will be without a soul." She said, tucking a lock of hair behind Criss' ear.

"What'll he be then?" JD asked.

"Contrary to popular belief, without a soul he won't be evil he'll just be a shell, everything that makes him, him will be gone. I believe the saying is, 'The lights are on, but no one's home'." Elidra explained her tone still low and calm. "His fever is spiking." She said, putting her hand on his forehead. "I have to get him to bed." She said, sniffling and wiping tears from her eyes. Gathering him in her arms, she picked him up as if he were a small child carrying him into his room, JD and Costa following closely. Elidra set him very carefully down on his bed, kissing his forehead before straightening.

"Is there anything you can do?" JD asked.

"There's something, but he'll be in excruciating pain and could die from that alone. Everything I do will send this thing into a destructive rage." She said, looking down at Criss with her arms hugging her body as if she were cold. "I need a large bowl filled with ice water and a cloth. I have to try to get his fever down." Costa rushed to get what she asked while JD stayed in the room, watching over his brother. He came back a short time later and handed it to Elidra; she in turn put it on the floor next to the bed and knelt down, soaking the cloth and starting to wipe the sweat from Criss' brow. He started to shiver again in his unconsciousness and she set the cloth down, pulling the blankets up to his chin and tucking them around his body. Cold water ran down his temples and soaked his hair, dampening the pillow.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Later that night, JD and Costa watched as Elidra knelt by the bed. She pushed Criss' shirt up to the base of his ribs, baring his entire abdomen. She gently placed her hands on his stomach and closed her eyes, her palms starting to glow. Criss' eyes snapped open and he screamed. Elidra had to struggle to keep her hands on him as his body writhed in pain.

"Oh god! Stop!" He cried but she paid him no attention.

"Elly!" JD yelled, going over to her. "You're hurting him!" he tried to pry her hands off of Criss, but she glared at him, her eyes blue.

"I warned you that this was going to happen. If you can't handle it, then leave." She said and but he made no move to leave. "In fact, why don't you both leave?"

"I think we'll stay." Costa said his tone angry.

"It wasn't a suggestion." Elidra said, her eyes closing again. There was no movement in the room. "Is there any reason why you two aren't gone?"

"He's our brother." JD said indignantly.

"I can take care of him." She said. "I'm the only one who can take care of him, and I can't have you two looking over my shoulder while I do it. I need to concentrate." Her eyes still closed, she heard the brothers leave the room, closing the door behind them. Criss snapped out of his pained haze and looked at her, his eyes dull.

"Elly?" he asked and she looked at him, reaching over to brush his hair out of his face.

"Hey, sweetie." She said gently.

"What's happening to me?"

"You're sick, and I'm going to try to get you better." She said and he nodded. Elidra laid her hands on his stomach again and the thing in his abdomen squirmed under her hands, pressing against her palms. Her hands started to glow and the thing went into a frenzy. Criss hands bunched in the sheets, his knuckles turning white.

Elidra emerged from room pale and tried looking, dark circles under her eyes. She collapsed onto the couch and leaned her head back, closing her eyes.

"How is he?" Costa asked.

"Resting." She said, not opening her eyes. "It's going slow, but I think I can get it purged out of his system."

"Will he survive it?" JD asked.

"That's why I'm going slowly, so his body can have time to repair and recover from the trauma before I go at it again. Elidra said and yawned. "He'll be fine. He's a strong one." Her breathing dropped to a slow and steady pace, so they knew that she had fallen asleep. JD got up from the chair he was sitting in and went to the closet, getting a blanket and shaking it out. Going over to her, he covered her up, tucking the blanket around her.

The two brothers left her in the living room and went to go check on Criss. They stopped short in the doorway as they looked at the sight before them. Criss was deathly white and gaunt looking, his breathing coming in short gasps. He looked so frail and weak underneath the heavy blankets, spasms of pain passing over his features every once in a while.

Leaving him to rest, they closed the door behind them and went back over to Elidra. Without a word, Costa picked her up in his arms and carried her into her room, laying her down on the bed and covering her up.

"How is she?" JD asked as Costa came back into the common area, closing the door silently behind him.

"She's sleeping. I doubt a nuclear bomb going off would wake her up." He said.

"But the moment Criss needed her…"

"She would be right there for him." Costa finished and sighed heavily, running his fingers through his hair. "This is messed up, JD." He said, his voice tired.

"Yeah, it is."

"Do you regret it?" His brother asked him.

"Regret what?" JD asked.

"Humoring Criss and taking her in to begin with. If we hadn't taken her in, then Criss would be perfectly fine right now, we wouldn't have all this knowledge that we do, and our lives wouldn't be so damn complicated. Do you regret it?"

"Sometimes, yeah I do." JD said, "I see Criss hurting himself with wanting her and thinking that we all can't see it. I saw him in there, looking so…vulnerable. He's one of the strongest people I've ever known and he's vulnerable and I couldn't help thinking that it was Elly's fault. If she had just left us alone, if Criss had just left her alone then…" he couldn't finish the thought.

"Then we wouldn't personally know the Archangel Michael and know that Lucifer, the Devil himself, really isn't such a bad guy after all."

"I guess we can forget what we learned in church." JD said and they shared a chuckle. It died and they were left in silence until Costa suddenly laughed. "What?" JD asked, fearing for his brothers' sanity.

"I was just remembering when Elly was in the hospital."

"Which time?" He asked drolly.

"After that incident in her shower."

"Oh! When all her old battle wounds opened again!" he said and Costa nodded.

"We denied it vehemently that she was anything but normal, anything but human. What I wouldn't give to be that naïve again."

"Shh!" JD mock scolded. "He might hear you!" he said, jabbing his finger downward.

Elidra lay in bed, having woken up shortly after Costa had left. Her black stared unwavering at the ceiling, her mind processing all that was going on in her life. She could hear the boys in the common area talking about doubt and regrets. She didn't blame them for blaming her.

Small noises escaped Criss' lips as nightmares plagued his mind.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Criss looked across a barren wasteland. The sky was blood red with ominous black clouds. Lightening flashed and thunder rolled but the air was dry. The ground was hard and cracked, the withered stalks of dead plants dotting the landscape like grave markers. The bodies of Angels and Demons littered the ground, wings were bent, broken, or torn away completely. Blood and offal soaked into the hard packed dirt, creating a grotesque, dark mud in some places. He watched as poisonous plants started to grow out of the mud that the Demons' blood created, while delicate, lace-like white plants grew out of the mud that the Angels' blood had formed. He didn't recognize the white plants, but the poisonous plants he recognized, deadly nightshade, yew, belladonna, and bloodroot. He watched as they overpowered the beautiful white plants and strangled the life out of them, turning them into twisted black spikes.

Movement caught his eye and he looked closer. One of the Angels was moving, their chest rising and falling in sharp gasps. Walking closer, but still be wary, his kept his eyes on the figure. Pale skin was coated in thick red blood and the Angel tried to pick itself up, but its arms failed it and it fell to the ground. As he grew closer, he recognized the Angel through the blood and dirt covering its face.

"Elly." He whispered and broke into a run, leaping over the decomposing bodies of Angels and Demons. When he reached her, his slid down into the dirt on his knees and picked her up in his arms, cradling her in his lap. A large slash in her thigh still leaked blood and he had to peel her hair away from her face, as it was matted to her skin. Large, ice blue eyes looked up at him, glazed over in pain and exhaustion.

"Criss?" she asked and he tried in vain to wipe away the dirt stuck to her skin. The light in her eyes faded and they frosted over as she exhaled, going limp in his arms.

"Elly?" he said but there was no response, her milk white eyes unseeing. He pressed his fingers to her neck, but the pulse was still. Tears ran down his face as he closed her eyelids, she was dead.

"You did this." He looked up and saw the Demon that had been responsible for torturing him. He still looked immaculate in a dark suit, his dark hair drawn back away from his face to the base of his neck.

"What do you mean?" Criss asked.

"Look." He said, moving his head down at the body in Criss' arms. Criss looked down and saw that his hand was wrapped around the hilt of a dagger whose blade was buried under Elidra's ribs. "You killed her." He jerked his hand away as if the metal had burned him.

"No, this isn't real." He said, gently lowering the image of Elidra down onto the ground.

"No." The demon said. "It isn't real, just thought I'd torment you a little." He waved his hand and the landscape was swept clean, leaving bare, dead ground. "It was real once, but of course our dear Elly didn't die during this battle."

"She's not an 'our'. She's mine, and you'll never have her." Criss said, standing.

"I will have whatever she's destined to have. He has a plan for her and I intend to cash in on that, no matter what. Not even if it destroys _our_ dear, sweet Elidra."

"You'll leave her alone, or I'll…"

"You'll what?" the demon challenged. "You're just a human, you can't do anything." Pure energy traveled down Criss' arm, the muscles clenching. His hand instinctively clenched and wrapped around something cold and hard. Looking down, he saw the shining blade that had materialized in his hand. "Now, that," the demon said, looking at it also. "Shouldn't be possible."

"I've always said that when the mind, body, and spirit come together, that anything is possible. We have the mind, and the spirit, now all I have to do is make the body catch up." He said and his hand tightened around the hilt of the blade. "You leave Elly alone, or I will kill you."

"Suit yourself." The demon snarled and vanished in a swirl of dust.

Criss woke with a shout, sitting upright in his bed.

"ELLY!" he yelled and the door burst open, framing the Fallen Angel, her chest heaving. Their eyes met and she went to him. His arms wrapped around her waist and she held his head to her chest, stroking his hair. He broke away as his stomach started to clench violently, something vile creeping up his throat. Leaning over the side of the bed, she pulled his sweat-damp hair away from his face as he purged something that looked like a giant black slug, its body bloated and shiny. It screeched and tried to squirm away but a gleaming blade appeared in Elidra's hand and swung down, cutting the thing neatly in half. Violent shivers wracked Criss' body and she held onto him, the blade disappearing. The shivers subsided to the occasional spasm and her hand stroked his back, leaving a wake that ignited his nerve endings with pure feeling.

His hands clenched, fisting the loose material of her shirt and he buried his face in her stomach. The warmth of her skin radiated into him, calming his frayed and delicate psyche. Criss took his face out of her stomach and looked up at her, meeting her warm, dark eyes. Cupping his cheek in her palm, her thumb stroked the high ridge of his cheekbone.

"Elly?" he asked softly.

"Yes, Criss?"

"I'm so tired." He said and put his face back into her stomach.

"Then go back to sleep." She said and moved as if to leave, but his hands tightened and his arms went rigid, keeping her in place.

"Please don't leave me alone." He pleaded as hot tears started to slide down his face, her shirt wicking them away.

"Shh, its okay, I won't." Elidra said as she ran her fingers through his hair, gently unraveling any knots she found. "But you have to let me go, Criss."

"No." he whimpered and held onto her tighter.

"I can't get into bed with you holding onto me." She said reasonably and he nodded, reluctantly letting her go. Walking around to the other side of the bed, she slid out of her jeans, folding them up neatly and placing them on a chair, getting under the covers when she was done. Criss lay back down and instantly curled up against her, his head on her chest and his arm curled around her waist. Her fingers went back to stroking his hair and he stared off into the distance for the longest time, listening to the sound of her heart beat. "Criss?"

"Yes?" he asked, not breaking out of his trance.

"How are you feeling?"

"I was feeling everything a moment ago, now I just feel numb." He said truthfully. "That thing that came out of me, it was the thing that was making me sick, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"It would have eventually killed me, wouldn't it?"

"Yes."

"I kept having nightmares, horrific scenes of carnage."

"Those are over now."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I'll keep the nightmares away." She said.

"Do you promise?"

"Yes, I promise."


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

He felt almost one hundred percent when he woke up, his eyes opening slowly. A wide yawn split his face and he sat up, running his fingers through his hair, wincing as tangles caught them. A small hand wound around his bicep and he looked down, seeing Elidra smiling up at him. Sunlight streamed in through the window, lighting upon her face and making her eyes glitter.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Better." Criss said. "Still a little weak, though."

"It may take a bit to get your strength back up again."

"After something like that, it makes me want to do a body burn." Criss said and Elidra laughed. "I'm definitely not doing another body suspension." She reached up and cupped his cheek in her palm, running her thumb over his chin and the area between his chin and lower lip. Leaning over and down, he pressed a gentle kiss to her lips and she responded almost immediately, her hand tunneling in his hair and her body rising to meet his. Giving out a low growl of frustration, Criss pinned her down onto the mattress with his body, his knee parting her legs.

"Criss, we have to stop." Elidra said as he started to rain kisses over her face and neck. He didn't listen to her, his hands pushing up the hem of her shirt. "Criss!" she grabbed a handful of his hair and tugged sharply. He stopped at the pain and looked at her.

"You're sending me a lot of mixed signals, babe." Criss said.

"I know. It's just whenever you kiss me I seem to lose control. Control I can't afford to lose." She said and Criss sighed, burying his face into her neck. She was so soft and so warm in his arms, and yet he knew, in an instant, she could become hard and cold, completely unfeeling and uncaring. She pushed with her body so she was on top and climbed off of him, grabbing her pants and pulling them on.

"The demon in my dreams last night before you came in said "our". "Our Elidra"" Criss said and her hand stilled on the doorknob.

"What did it look like?" She asked and he described it the best he could. Elidra looked at him when he was done, old, deep pain making her eyes shine.

"Do you know him?" he asked.

"That was Beelzebub." She said, exhaling a large shaky breath.

"Do you know him? Was he an Angel?" Criss asked but she shook her head.

"Beelzebub was always evil, but he was incorporeal before he found a body to inhabit."

"Who did he inhabit?"

"Judas Escariot." She said and he was silent for a very long time.

"Before or after he betrayed the Son of God?"

"Before. He wanted to hurt God, but he couldn't inhabit His son so he did one better. He killed him." Elidra said.

"So the only reason why he betrayed Jesus Christ to the Romans was because was possessed by a demonic entity."

"Yes. My Father was all ready to forgive Judas and welcome him into Heaven; He knew that he had no control over his actions. Then Beelzebub added insult to injury and made Judas kill himself, casting his soul into Hell for all of eternity." 

"And giving him a form." Criss added and Elidra nodded. "Did you know Judas personally?" she nodded again.

"I can't talk about him. Please Criss, don't ask me to." She pleaded, her voice cracking with emotion.

"Okay." Criss said and she was gone from his room before he could say anything else.

Elidra curled up on her bed in the fetal position, forcing back tears. Judas' warm brown eyes and handsome face appeared before her minds eye and the dam broke, her body shaking almost violently as she sobbed into her hands. Memories flashed through her mind and it felt like her heart was breaking all over again as she relived those memories. Not the ones of his betrayal and death, no, she had come to terms with those so very long ago. The ones that caused her the most pain were the memories that made her happy, every memory of him making her smile and laugh, every memory of him holding her close. Those were like a knife, constantly digging into her, trying to kill her from the inside out.

A callused hand laid on her shoulder and she looked up, jumping off the other side of the bed, her blade naked and gleaming in her hand as Beelzebub stood opposite from her.

"Elly?" he asked, his voice lost and sad. "It's me. It's Jude." His eyes glittered with tears as he looked at her on the defensive.

"Jude?" she asked, lowering the weapon slightly.

"I can't keep him back for long, he's so very strong. Please, I felt your pain." The blade vanished from her hand and he went to her, gathering her into his arms and holding her to his chest. Warmth spread through her body at his touch and she relaxed into him. Inhaling deeply, she took in his familiar scent and her heart opened, her body starting to glow with a soft white light. "You're helping to keep him at bay, thank you." Judas said, kissing the top of her head. Pulling back slightly, they looked at each other and his hands came up to cup her face. "I missed you so much." His mouth descended and claimed hers, his lips hot and possessive. She became soft and pliant against him as he deepened the kiss.

"Jude." Elidra whispered against his lips when they broke away. Terror suddenly filled his eyes.

"He's coming; I can't keep him back any longer. I needed to see you; I needed to take that pain away." He said. Grasping the sides of his head, she kissed him, hard and brief. "I love you."

"I love you too, so much." Elidra said and he pulled away completely, crossing the room to put as much distance between them as possible. His whole demeanor then changed, his eyes becoming hard and cold. Snarling at her, he vanished in a flash of fire and she sank to the ground, tears streaming down her face.


	35. Message

Wondering why this story hasn't been updated in like forever

Wondering why this story hasn't been updated in like _forever?_

See my profile for details!


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